Song of Spirits
by Animeimaginationgrl
Summary: Zoey and the gang must stop Neferet and the white bull from completely messing up the balance of nature and destroying peace. When a fledgling arrives suspicions are raised, can they trust her or not? Mainly an OC fic, NOT Mary Sue. Au, after Destined.
1. Chapter 1

This HoN story is with my OC and takes place between the ending of Destined and Hidden (the next book in the series). This is in a sense my version of Hidden and stuff and my own interpretation of what would happen in Hidden but of course it's completely far off. I also have some of my own guesses of what will happen in the later books and of course some spoilers in here from Destined if you haven't read the book yet.

Disclaimer: I do NOT own House of Night at ALL!

Warning: Slight adult themes but no major things plus profanity and a tiny fraction of gore at points.

Main Pairings: Zoey/Stark/Aurox/Heath, Stevie Rae/Rephiam, Nisroc/OC.

Slight Pairings: Neferet/white bull, Erik/Shaylin/Venus, Aphrodite/Darius, and Lenobia/Travis.

Very slight pairing: Kalona/Zoey/Thanatos.

Key: "Talking" _"Emphasis" thoughts _setting change/_POV change_

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><p><span>Redbird Farm_ Zoey_

We all stood in silence after Nyx went and left. We didn't move and didn't say a word for like the longest time! I was starting to get freaked out by the silence but couldn't find it in myself to speak. It was, of all people, Rephiam who said something first.

"So… What now?"

"It is obvious to us that since we have finished our work here we should return to the House of Night. But first, let's give Professor Lankford a proper burial." Thanatos replied as she made her way over to Dragon's maimed body. Kalona followed her out of instinct I guess and when she knelt beside Dragon he stayed standing behind her, almost protectively like the Warrior he used to be and I guess now is again.

"How does one bury a vampire?" Grandma asked as she wiped her eyes dry. That was when I realized I was starting to cry with the memories of my mom's death fresh in my mind.

"Simple Sylvia, we burn him."

"What?" Shaunee squeaked out. I guess I understand why she is shocked, I kinda was too, but fire was mainly her element and knowing Thanatos Shaunee would have to be the one to light the flame.

"Yes Shaunee, you will have to come here please. As well as everyone else. We need to pay our respects and burn him."

"Me especially." Stevie Rae said as she helped Rephiam stand and held on to his hand tightly. "He saved Rephiam." Rephiam nodded, agreeing with her.

So we all gathered around Dragon, we waiting for Grandma for a bit because she went to go get a blanket to throw on top of him. We all said a bit about him, just a bit and soon we stood back and watched Dragon's body burn. We waited until the fire had simmered and when the flames were gone not even the bones were left. It was actually kind of cool. But all throughout the burning all I could think about was my mom's murder and Aurox (Heath in my mind). Heath's in Aurox, at least his soul anyways. Suddenly everything Aurox had done had made sense, especially the Kleenex. I just couldn't believe it and it made my heart go in all sorts of different directions. I was so out of it in thought that I didn't realize that everyone had gone and went to pile into the bus leaving me and Grandma.

"Zoeybird, are you all right?" Grandma said as she put her hand on my shoulder.

"Hm? Oh yes Grandma. I'm just… Just in thought I guess."

"About Linda?"

"Not really." I confessed.

"What's on your mind Zoeybird?"

I wondered for a moment if I should really tell Grandma. I mean I tell her everything but hell; this is something even _I _don't know anything about. So instead I shook my head. "No, it's not much of anything Grandma. Just Dragon and Neferet and all this bull poopie that's been happening around here lately."

I don't think Grandma bought it but she simply nodded and let it slid. Thank the Goddess. "Okay baby, just know that I'll be here if you want anyone to talk to."

"Thanks Grandma." We hugged and then from the distance I heard Stark calling out to me.

"Hey Zo! We need to move! Sun's going to rise in an hour or so and we still need to stop by the House of Night!"

I laughed, feeling his impatience and slight worry. I knew at that moment we were going to have a talk because I knew he felt that something was off about me. "Bye Grandma."

"Goodbye child." We went off our separate ways and started off towards the House of Night.

Later at the House of Night_/No POV_

"I have a strange feeling…" Thanatos said immediately upon entering the House of Night. "Something feels off."

"I feel it too." Rephiam agreed with her.

Zoey's feelings were off as well, though she hardly thought that it was whatever Thanatos and Rephiam were feeling but for the whole mother's-death-revealed-and-Aurox-being-Heath's-soul thing instead. Whatever it was it was sorely affecting her friends around her and Thanatos as well.

"Where is Neferet?" Thanatos asked suddenly, her voice even and even a bit scary as she fell into her role of taking over the House of Night as her own.

From out of the shadows Neferet appeared as if she was there the whole time. "I'm here Thanatos." Neferet began, her eyes wondering around the gang before landing on Kalona for a minute and then refocusing her attention on Thanatos. "Was there something you needed?" She said her teeth clenched and her body stiff.

"Yes in fact." Thanatos continued on with her bravado. "I am taking over the Tulsa House of Night and you Neferet are hereby exiled from the House of Night for not only consorting with the white bull of Darkness but for also killing an innocent human."

Neferet stood still, her thoughts and mind being jumbled around in an effort to retort back to the other vampyre. Neferet soon heaved a sigh and decided not to fight against Thanatos or further convey her use of darkness any more for the time being. "As you wish High Priestess." Her leniency shocked most of Zoey and her friends, in fact all of them, even Kalona, but they knew that even though she was leaving easily did not mean that she was gone for good. Neferet would eventually come back and she'll strike harder and far more angrily the next time. "But if I could just say High Priestess…" She paused and looked back at Thanatos. "Perhaps you should check up on your cat. He was feeling quite ill just moments before." Neferet smirked at the new High Priestess and disappeared into the shadows once more.

Thanatos stiffened and looked towards the teachers' dorms. Kalona too tensed and looked in that general direction. "It couldn't be…" Thanatos said softly. "She could not have possibly…" Without warning Thanatos started to run towards the teacher's dorms Kalona following her.

The gang stayed behind, feeling a big hole of worry in their hearts. "You don't think Neferet did anything to Thanatos' cat?" Stevie Rae asked towards her friends.

"How am I supposed to know?" Aphrodite replied first. "Hell, I didn't even know Thanatos brought her cat along with her but you know what? I wouldn't doubt that Neferet would do something like that."

"But killing a cat?" Shaunee asked. "What would she gain from killing a cat?"

"Not just any cat." Damian shook his head slowly. "Thanatos' cat. The cat probably has some—"

"_No!_" A scream echoed from the teachers' dorms.

The gang collectively gasped. "Goddess be damned!" Aphrodite cursed. "The cat must have been killed by Neferet!"

"But what would she gain from killing a cat?" Shaunee repeated again starting to feel anxious as did the rest of the gang.

"The same reason anyone might want to kill an animal." Rephiam remarked. "A sacrifice."

Stevie Rae looked at her Consort. "What? Really? You really think it was for a sacrifice?"

"I can't think of anything else. Animals have always been used for sacrifices, wither to gain power or as tribute or whatever. The same goes for humans as well." Rephiam looked at Zoey at the end and the unique fledgling tensed.

"Goddess be damned!" Aphrodite said once more.

"Why the hell is Neferet going around sacrificing things?" Erin asked. "What could all of these sacrifices be going to?"

"We don't know the answer to that really." Darius finally inputted. "One could say that Zoey's mother's death could have been for the creation of Aurox for he is defiantly not of this earth."

"And is defiantly from the white bull." Damian agreed.

Darius nodded while Stark picked up on it. "Whatever Aurox is he's not something we want to keep alive. He's dangerous. He killed Dragon tonight." Zoey inhaled and shuddered. "See?" Stark said as he draped one arm around Zoey's shoulders and brought her close to him. "Even Z here gets the heebie jeebies from him.

"Z, are you alright girl?" Stevie Rae asked her best friend.

"Yeah I'm fine." Zoey lied effortlessly for once. "It's just… Everything that's been going on and now this? It's all too much you know?"

"Yeah well…" Erin drawled out. "What do you suppose we do now?"

"We have to get back into the tunnels." Zoey replied immediately. "The sun will rise soon and Stevie Rae needs to get underground and all."

"What about Thanatos?" Damian asked.

Zoey looked in the direction of the teachers' dorms and opened her mouth to say something when Rephiam interrupted. "I know you don't trust him that much, and you have reason to, but father will take care of Thanatos. He is required to do so now; in fact, he wants to do so now."

"I can't believe I'm saying this but I agree with Bird Boy." Aphrodite said rubbing a hand to her face. "Kalona is Thanatos' Warrior now, he'll stay with her."

"Then let's go." Darius stated as he took Aphrodite's hand in his. "We must get going if we wish to beat the sun."

"I do hope Thanatos is alright." Damian said as they gang slowly started to make their way to the bus.

Only Stark and Zoey lingered in the courtyard of the House of Night. "Zoey," Stark started out slowly, "are you sure you're alright? You're tense and you've been shivering and I mean it's kind of chilly out here but that's not what causing you to shake like this. And your emotions are all over the place and—"

"I'm fine Stark I promise." Zoey interrupted softly. "I just… I need some sleep."

Stark groaned. "Sleep? I hate to sleep."

"I know Stark." Zoey said softly as she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a hug and he hugged her back. In her mind she knew that the hug was more for her than for Stark. "But I'll be there with you. There's no need to be afraid." _Now if only I can say the same for me._

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><p>That's the introductiontrial chapter for this story. Tell me what you think and if I should continue it so pretty much… _**Please Review! Please! Review!**_

PS: It was probably Neferet's cat that she ended up sacrificing and not Thanatos' because I don't even think Thanatos has a cat but I just do not think that Neferet would have killed her own cat. That's just… I don't know. It's just not something I would see her do.


	2. Chapter 2

This is the chapter where I introduce my OC. Hopefully you don't think of her as a Mary Sue when you first meet her 'cause trust me, a Mary Sue she is not. Anyways, enjoy the chapter.

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><p><span>House of Night_No POV_

It had been just a day since Zoey and the gang plus Thanatos figured out who had killed Linda, Zoey's mom, and it was yet another night and another day of school at the Tulsa House of Night. Thanatos, still shaken up from the death of her cat was very distant today in her classes as well as to the other professors. The only one that she seemed to confide into remarkably was Kalona.

"Is his death still bothering you?" Kalona asked her at lunch. He had a rough first night seeing as everyone was fearful, or angered, or just plain aloof at him. Even the females who had once dreamed of Kalona in their beds when he was first freed cowered or yelled at him. The tables have definitely turned in the House of Night but what was the strangest for him was being a Warrior again, and not to Nyx. He had always thought, but never admitted it, that if he were able to become a Warrior again he would be Nyx's Warrior once more. Though being Warrior to Thanatos has not yet proved to be too difficult besides her understandable distance today, he felt strange as to be in such a position of a Warrior again and not to mention the Sword Master of the House of Night. He had never once been a Sword Master and being new at this and teaching has allowed the students to walk all over him. The upside of everything is that since he is the new Sword Master the separate class with Darius, Stark and Rephiam were able to once again join in on their regular periods and the time he spends with his favorite son, even if it is one short hour, helps him get through the day. It also helped that Nisroc, his second favorite son, was hanging around the House of Night, not participating in the night's activities of course but always close by to give his father some company and even his brother as well during class changes.

"Yes." Thanatos finally replied taking a sip of blood laced wine. Usually she would object to having her wine be laced with blood, it felt disturbing to her, to have to hide the blood within the wine, but she needed that extra dose the blood gave to her as well as the wine. It is hard to vampyres to become drunk, but at least she can pretend she is with the taste of blood running down her throat. She took one more sip before setting the glass down and continuing. "I will be fine after a while. I am still getting over the shock."

The Fallen Warrior nodded curtly. "That is understandable High Priestess." The title rolled off his tongue naturally and he realized faintly that despite the weirdness of being a Warrior once more and not to Nyx was actually comforting. "I am sure you will feel happiness again, and soon."

"Thank you my Warrior." She smiled faintly at him. The thought of having Kalona as her Warrior was still fairly new to her. She had never had a Warrior before but she knew enough to know what it is to be a Warrior and a High Priestess. Changing the subject she asked her Warrior how was his day so far.

Kalona sighed softly. "Difficult. It seems the only being who is even giving me a decent glance is my son and he doesn't even count."

"Don't worry Kalona." Thanatos assured using the Fallen Warrior's name. "I am sure that sooner or later the others will accept you. It will only be a matter of time."

Kalona smiled faintly. "Thank you... Thanatos." The vampyre smiled at the mention of her name. It was really the first time that either of them said each other's name since they became High Priestess and Warrior. The rest of the lunch hour continued without a hitch that was until the last class change where Dallas and Rephiam had another violent run in with each other.

"Birdbrain!" Dallas screamed at Rephiam.

"Brain dead!" Rephiam retaliated.

Surrounding them the fledglings started to chant "Fight, fight, fight…" It was one of those moments in the day where the professors were seemingly nowhere in sight and the others were detained elsewhere leaving Dallas and his band of red fledglings and Rephiam left in the fray. Behind Dallas the red fledglings cheered him on, urging him to dismantle the ex-Raven Mocker. A fight was soon to start. Dallas and Rephiam were edging closer, their anger boiling and their fists clenched, Dallas' starting to absorb any electricity in the surrounding area. It was at the moment just before the first flew that one solitary voice sang out, literally sang out.

_I let it fall, my heart,  
>and as it fell you rose to claim it<br>It was dark and I was over  
>until you kissed my lips and you saved me<em>

The crowd of fledglings parted like the Red Sea and a single fledgling with auburn colored hair and brilliant purple eyes stood with the purple outline of the crescent moon on her forehead. She started to walk down the parted group of fledglings, her sudden outburst of song freezing everyone in place as she continued the song.

_My hands, they're strong_  
><em>but my knees were far too weak<em>  
><em>to stand in your arms<em>  
><em>without falling to your feet<em>

She reached Rephiam and Dallas and stood between them. Placing her hands on their chest she gave a gentle shove and they walked backwards away from each other, seemingly in a trance. At that moment Zoey and her friends arrived in the courtyard and watched from the highest vantage point as the event below them continued.

_But there's a side to you  
>that I never knew, never knew.<br>All the things you'd say  
>they were never true, never true,<br>And the games you play  
>you would always win, always win…<em>

As she moved to the next verse the sky above her erupted in purple clouds, clouds that looked remarkably made out of spirit. The fledglings and even the professors that were rushing into the courtyard at that moment watched in awe as the clouds above them seemed to sway to the song the fledgling was singing.

_But I set fire to the rain,_  
><em>Watched it pour as I touched your face,<em>  
><em>Well, it burned while I cried<em>  
><em>'Cause I heard it screaming out your name, your name!<em>

She began to move again, towards a tree where Nisroc was currently stationed in. He fought with himself before to see if he should fly in and help his older brother but decided against it since he was still not discovered by any of the vampyres and fledglings here and he did not want to jeopardize it.

_When I lay with you  
>I could stay there<br>close my eyes  
>feel you here forever<br>you and I together  
>nothing is better<em>

She looked up into the tree suddenly and their eyes locked, red ones to purple and she sung half of the next verse looking at him before turning back and facing the others, Dallas and Rephiam specifically.

_'Cause there's a side to you  
>That I never knew, never knew,<br>All the things you'd say,  
>They were never true, never true,<br>And the games you play  
>You would always win, always win.<em>

As the chorus came up the clouds above started to flash as what seemed to be lighting now flashed in the clouds to the time of the song and her voice. It was apparent that the spirit, for it was the manifested form of spirit, reacted to her and her voice, the spirit and the mysterious singing fledgling together thinking as one.

_But I set fire to the rain,  
>Watched it pour as I touched your face,<br>Well, it burned while I cried  
>'Cause I heard it screaming out your name, your name!<em>

_I set fire to the rain_  
><em>and I threw us into the flames<em>  
><em>where it felt something die<em>  
><em>'Cause I knew that that was the last time, the last time!<em>

The fledgling then walked past the two again and stood upon one of the benches in the courtyard singing now towards the other fledglings, somehow asserting some sort of warning that pertained not only to the fight that was nearly started between Rephiam and Dallas, but towards any other impending fights as well.

_Sometimes I wake up by the door,  
>that heart you caught must be waiting for you<br>Even now when we're already over  
>I can't help me from looking for you.<em>

Now as she sang the chorus the lighting touching down to the earth and surrounding trees and fire made out of spirit ignited the areas the lighting had touched. Another fledgling timidly toughed the fire only to not get burned but to suddenly feel enlightened with himself, just as the singing fledgling felt enlightened when she sings.

_I set fire to the rain,  
>Watched it pour as I touched your face,<br>Well, it burned while I cried  
>'Cause I heard it screaming out your name, your name<em>

She sang the chorus again but this time it started to rain spirit down upon the courtyard and as this was going on she got off the bench and walked between the two feuding males and ushered with her fingers to come towards her. They moved, seemingly without their permission towards her.

_I set fire to the rain,  
>and I threw us into the flames<br>where it felt something die  
>'Cause I knew that that was the last time, the last time, oh, ohh!<em>

They met in the middle as she was vocalizing the last bit of the song and her hands were practicing a flame with spirit. She toughed their shoulders and they fell to their knees as she ending the song with one last, breathtaking vocalization. When the song finished the materialized spirit disappeared instantly. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "The power of Adele boys… That and a super powerful fledgling such as myself." She said in a faint British accent as she kneeled down before the boys. "By the way, you two are in so much trouble for nearly starting a fight on school property. You know that it is not allowed and you better be thankful that I came in through the front door when I did." She stood again and looked at the gathered fledglings. "Well?" She questioned them. "Don't you all have somewhere to go?" The crowd dispersed leaving behind Zoey and the gang, the red fledglings, Nisroc and Thanatos and Kalona who arrived sometime in the middle of the song.

All those on the ground gathered around closer (Nisroc watched and listened from his tree) and before they all erupted into talk Thanatos took the intuitive. "Excuse me, but if you don't mind me asking, who are you? I haven't seen you around school."

She fisted her hand over her heart and bowed down to Thanatos. "That's because I am new." The fledgling replied straightening. "I am Liran Sanders." She turned to the others. "Pronounced lee-rahn, not lee-ran. If you pronounce it wrong you will have a very unhappy camper." She turned back and further explained her being there. "Lady Death I am from the London House of Night. When I heard that you have taken up here at the Tulsa House of Night as a professor I just had to transfer." Liran smiled at her. "Though it seems along the way you have become the High Priestess. I congratulate you ma'am."

"Oh thank you Liran." Thanatos said. "Now you said that you transferred here? Whatever for?"

"I am currently in training to fill in that position in the High Council. Well I always have been, well no that's a lie. I just have been, let us just say that. I am a sixth former you see and I wanted my chance to get up close and personally to a member of the High Council but it has been difficult for me to get an audience with any member so, as I mentioned before, when I heard that you became a professor here I hoped along on a jet and flew across the pond to meet you here. I am very serious about this work and very delighted to finally meet you." She fisted a hand over her heart and bowed again.

"Well…" Thanatos drawled out slowly, taken aback and shocked by this fledgling but otherwise impressed. "And I see you have a very strong spiritual affiliation."

"Yes very much so. I have always had a connection with spirit, even since before I was Marked. It was just something I always processed and my affiliation with spirit is at its strongest when I sing, another gift I have from Nyx."

"Very interesting." Thanatos remarked. "I haven't seen such spiritual power in such a long time."

"Thank you Lady Death."

"Please, call me Thanatos."

"Thank you Thanatos." Liran bowed her head. "Now, to get onto these two," she pointed towards Rephiam and Dallas, "they were almost in a fight but I stopped it before it would get too far, or even start for that matter."

"Well thank you Liran." Thanatos looked at the two. She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off my Liran.

"My apologies Lady—I mean Thanatos, but I have a horse stuck in a rental trailer outside of the school and Amiron, my horse, does not enjoy long trips at all. I am sure he'd like some hoof room so may I be excused?"

"Of course Liran."

"Thank you once more Thanatos." Before walking away she nodded towards Zoey and the group, automatically recognizing them before walking back from where she came, her luggage haphazardly tossed on the ground where she had dropped them to stop the fight.

Thanatos and the others watched as Liran picked up her bags and started to head back to the entrance of the dorms to quickly drop off her things before heading back to Amiron. "Kalona, please go and help her would you?" Thanatos asked her Warrior. He nodded and followed after the fledgling.

A silence overcame the group before Stark almost yelled out "Well shit. The girl's got some pair of lungs on her."

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><p>End of chapter 2. The next chapter will take off immediately where this one ended and might, key word <em>might<em> have some Lenobia/Travis moments when Kalona and Liran go to bring Amiron to his stable.

So what did you think of Liran Sanders so far? I hope she didn't come off as too much Mary Sue but I can promise you she is NOT a Mary Sue. There's some messed up past behind her but I won't say too much.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE SONG USED IN THIS CHAPTER (_SET FIRE TO THE RAIN _BY ADELE)!

_**Please review! More reviews faster updates (mainly because you remind me I have this story up and running)!**_


	3. Chapter 3

House of Night/_Liran:_

I just couldn't stop staring. How could you _not_? The guy has wings. _Wings_! I mean I know who he is. Who doesn't? But still… Damn! I didn't think they were serious when they said that he has _wings_! But you know they were definitely skimping out on how hot he is. Like a god really except he isn't a god, he's just immortal, but same diff right? Whatever.

Anyways I was staring at him as we walked to the truck/trailer rental when he turned his head and practically glared at me. "Is there something you need to speak to me about?"

"No of course not Kalona." I said using his name. I wasn't afraid of him. I mean it's not like he can hurt me. I can _feel_ the bond he has with Thanatos even though it was brand spanking new and with that in mind the bond was super strong, as if they had been together for years.

"You used my name." Kalona spoke in surprise.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I? Or would you prefer being called Professor? I could go do either."

"You… You don't hate me?"

"Why would I?"

He remained silent and looked ahead. We walked in silence until we reached my rental vehicle and trailer and he spoke again. "How do you know that I am a professor? Surely it wouldn't be on the school's website yet."

"No. I could feel it of you, of this whole place actually." I paused to focus on opening the trailer. "This whole school's got a lot to say. I was blown away by all the earth has to say when I stepped onto the grounds."

"You can read the earth?"

"Well the spirit in the earth. Spirit is my only affinity with a side gift for music." I opened the trailer and Amiron practically jumped me trying to get out. Kalona stepped back and watched a clearly not tied up (but used to be I swear! He must have chewed the ropes in anxiety…) Highland pony run out. "Amiron!" I scolded him. He stopped instantly, feeling my angry spirit radiating off of me. Amiron typically isn't a bad horse, in fact he's the best one I've ever had the pleasure on raising, and the prettiest. He was a beautiful and shiny dun with a dark brown/black mane and tail, black tips, black stockings and a black dorsal stripe running down his back. He stood at a short 12.3 hands and currently he was staring at Kalona like I was doing earlier. I giggled as I started to feel Kalona's mixed emotions of agitation, annoyance with an uncomfortable undertone. "Yes Amiron he has wings. His name is Kalona, the Sword Master here." He dipped his head down in understanding and apology towards Kalona. "Come on silly boy," I started as I reached back into the trailer to grab the extra rope and then tie it around his red (also his favorite color) bridle.

Kalona, Amiron, and I started to walk towards the stables (I was guessing, it's not like I could go anywhere else with a horse) when conversation started up again, once more by Kalona. "I see that you noticed Nisroc."

"Hm? Who?" I asked the fallen immortal, genuinely confused.

"My son… The Raven Mocker in the tree…" Kalona hesitatingly started.

"Oh!" I said suddenly frightening Amiron a bit, the poor anxiety ridden horse. I apologized quickly to him and replied to Kalona. "Yes I did. Nisroc was it? Doesn't the name mean 'freedom'?"

"Yes it does." He paused. "If you noticed him, why did you not reveal him?"

"I do not reveal others when I know that they are in hiding. It was obvious to me without feeling of his spirit that he was trying not to be seen. I do not 'out' beings so to speak." Now I paused. "Okay that's a lie. I out-ed one of my guy friends who's gay but it was an accident! I was trying to get this guy to know that he liked him but lo and behold, the guy is straight and there goes a friendship…"

The fallen immortal chuckled faintly. The sound threw me off and I looked at him with confusion on my face. He must have seen it for he then gave me a reason why he just laughed. "I find it amusing how at one moment you are a strict and mature fledgling not using contractions to a regular teenage girl."

I end up chuckling at his observation. "Yeah well I find that every person should have at least two different versions of themselves, 'one for work and one for play' as I always say so then that way one can keep the lives separate to an extent. Sometimes the two blur into one and then eventually one falls out of the window."

"As I can see." He chuckled out.

We reached the stables then and I can say that I was impressed. In the London House of Night the stables were small but fairly new since no one there had a horse before me. It was because of a certain Wales countryside chick who wanted to bring her favorite horse everywhere (me) that they had to set aside some land to build a stable literally just for me until other students decided to bring their horses. These stables were big, not new, but were really nice from what I could tell. Looking at the stable I was excited to meet Lenobia the Horse Mistress and get to know her better and to have her meet Amiron, something I felt that she would enjoy.

"I have other matters to attend to Miss Sanders." Kalona said suddenly. "I trust that you can handle this and then go to your dorm without trouble?"

"Yes Professor Kalona. I should be just fine." I fisted my hand over my chest and gave a bow which he returned gracefully before walking away. Once he was gone I turned to my Highland pony. "Come on my big boy," which is really ironic since he is short for his breed, "let's go find your room."

We entered the barn and my suspicions of the barn were confirmed. It was more than nice it was grand! Despite the age it looked new and clean. I was so excited suddenly and that's when I realized that it was Amiron that was excited and that I was feeding off his own emotions. I smiled and called softly out into the large barn, careful not to disturb the other horses. "Excuse me, Lenobia? I am Liran Sanders a new exchange student. I have a horse here that needs your care and attention please."

I started to hear footsteps and I started to feel anxious thinking that it was Lenobia but instead it was a human male, a cowboy I believe form the looks of his clothing and hat. I began to wonder why a human was on the property until he spoke, shattering my thought. "Howdy there missy." He sounded his accent thick and almost amusing. I have never heard this accent before and when you do hear it for the first time you can't help but crack a small smile. Amiron beside me was just confused by the accent. He only knows the British and Irish accent and I suppose, like Americans get confused by the thick cockney accent, Amiron got confused by the American country accent. "I'm Travis; I'm a stable hand here."

"Oh." I sounded. "That's great. This is Amiron, my Highland pony."

Travis chuckled at him and I could see Amiron beside me move his head back suddenly in anger. I could only giggle as the two reacted to each other. "You're a bit short for a Highland aren't ya?"

Amiron understood that and neighed loudly at Travis. I held Amiron back as well as a loud laugh. "He doesn't like being called short."

"I can see that. Sorry boy." Travis came up slowly and started to pat Amiron's checks softly, which Amiron loved and quickly forgave the cowboy. "Would you like him to be in his stable now?"

"Yes, but where can I put these down?" I asked motioning to the bags that were in my free hand, my other bags I left in the truck for now.

"Right there would be fine." Travis said simply as he pointed to the side next to a stall door. I didn't even get to see the horse inside when Travis started to walk Amiron down the hall. I followed the two and watched as Travis walked Amiron into the stall, ironically next to a huge Percheron.

I giggled and spoke towards Amiron. "Oh dear, I'm sorry to say buddy that you'll look short bunking next to this big boy."

"Girl." Travis said instantly. "Her name's Bonnie, she's my horse."

"Oh really?" I said in pure surprise. "I thought cowboys rode Mustangs and Paints."

He chuckled and walked out of the stall to go get a bucket of water for Amiron from a spout not far from us. "Common misconception. I just love big horses and Bonnie's no different."

I got a closer look at Bonnie. "She is beautiful." She whinnied in response. "Oh you are very welcome dear."

"You understand her?" Travis asked me as he placed the bucket back and closed the stall door so that Amiron wouldn't run out.

"Kind of. It was obvious she thanked me. She wouldn't yell at me if I complimented her. Percherons are too proud a breed." There was a pause as Travis went to get a few more things for Amiron, including a few treats which once again he enjoyed. "Excuse me Travis." I said getting the cowboy's attention. "Is Lenobia not here?"

The air suddenly dropped from a semi awkward 'meeting stage' to a suddenly depressing state. The light in his eyes dimmed and I though the worse but then he spoke up and calmed my over-reactive mind. "She is up in her room. She lives above the stable you see."

"I see." I said simply. Travis recovered quickly and moved away without another word. I walked up closer to Amiron's stall door and pushed my hand between the bars and he came up to my hand instantly. Once Travis was out of range, tending to another horse, I spoke, quietly, to Amiron. "It seems to be that something must have happened between Lenobia and Travis, don't you believe so Amiron?" He dipped his head and whinnied softly. In the next stall Bonnie mimicked the motion. I moved from Amiron to Bonnie and pushed my hand through the bars just as I did to Amiron and she came up to me. "Bonnie, may I ask you a question?" She whinnied in response, a yes. "Will they be alright? What happened between them won't hurt them?" She barely made a sound but it was there, a very soft whinny of uncertainly and worry. "Alright. For you big girl I will keep an eye on them. Make sure their spirits don't fall too far." She neighed again in gratitude and I bowed my head to her in acknowledgement. Moving back to Amiron I said my goodbyes and went to collect my things and eventually walk out of the stall to my dorm. I said goodbye to Travis but he was being aloof and did not reply back.

House of Night Stable/_Lenobia_

I heard her call through the floor of my room. I was about to move downstairs, I really was, until the thought of facing Travis stopped me in my tracks. I ended up sitting on my bed, straining my ears to hear the conversation and movements downstairs. It was pretty basic stuff, though Travis did not state to the fledgling (Liran Sanders was it?) the rules of the stable but that was quiet alright. I'll explain them to her eventually. There then came a moment where she asked for me and Travis remained quiet. My heart dropped as I'm sure his did as well. Then he replied and walked off. After that any conversation was whispered or there was none for I heard nothing for a while until she said goodbye and Travis did not reply. I could only guess that he just tipped his head to her in that adorable cowboy way of—

"No!" I scolded myself aloud. "Don't Lenobia! Don't! Don't do this to yourself again!" I sighed and laid back on the bed. What was I to do? I am the Horse Mistress of the school and all day today I was practically not here since I was trying my hardest to avoid the stable hand. I had to just forget what had happened, that kiss, those memories, and just move on. Do my job.

It was at that moment I stood and decided to go downstairs to meet the new horse. I took my time getting down the stairs, being careful not to make a sound. When I saw that no one was in the stable, not even Travis, I quickly moved to the new horse. He was a Highland, a really pretty dun and obviously well tended to. He was startled by my presence but calmed instantly when our eyes met. "Hello there big boy." He whinnied in excitement and I laughed. "Yes, you like being called a big boy don't you?" I giggled and entered the stall. I started to pet his coat. It was still long from winter but as I petted him hair started to fall off. I quickly moved to get a brush, my thoughts absolutely not on Travis as I started to brush out the Highland. I could tell that he was enjoying the brushing for the horse started to press into the brush, demanding more and more brushing. I giggled at the Highland. He was such an adorable boy.

I continued brushing him for what seemed like hours but was truly just half of one. I had gotten most of the loose hair off his body, which I'm sure he enjoyed too, when I could feel eyes on me. Turning I saw that Travis was leaning against the archway of the stall door. 'Trapped' was the word that first came to mind. Squaring my shoulders, out of impulse or self-reassurance I couldn't tell, and continued to brush the Highland, even though I was nearly done with him. "His name is Amiron." Travis spoke softly as he continued to watch me. I nodded to give him the assurance I was listening. "His owner's name is Liran Sanders. She seems like a nice girl."

My breathing became heavier as he lingered there. My old feelings, my wanting, increasing with every stroke the brush took on Amiron's body, and I took many strokes. "I will talk to her later to find out more about her. If she has a horse she probably has a class with me. Maybe the last one, there's hardly anyone in there." I said, keeping the conversation strictly on horses.

Out of the corner of my eye I could see Travis nod and push himself off the doorway. I could have sworn he was going to walk to me, close the space between us, form where I stood I could see it pass his face as he thought about it. But then he took a step back out of the archway and I forced myself to keep my face forward on Amiron. "I'm almost done with the night duties." Travis spoke quickly. His mouth opened like he wanted to say something else but he then moved away down the hall and that's when I turned my head. I felt my heart break more and I damned myself for being the stupid girl that I am. I sighed heavily, a quiet sob breaking from my mouth. Amiron nuzzled me with his head and behind me I could feel Bonnie press herself up against the wall, trying to get closer to me. I smiled faintly and collected myself, finishing myself with Amiron before I once again retreated to my room before Travis returned.

* * *

><p>End of the chapter. The next chapter, we learn of Liran's schedule and of other things, and she and Nisroc have a one-on-one chat time among (hopefully) other things.<p>

_**PLEASE REVIEW!**_


	4. Chapter 4

House of Night/_No POV_

Liran woke up bright and early, or in this case for vampyres, dark and early, to talk to Thanatos about her schedule, which in the tangled up mess of the night before, she did not receive one. Plus she was sure there would be a question or two about her schedule. She knocked on the door to Thanatos' office and a soft 'come in' sounded. The fledgling opened the door and wandered inside a room that had plenty of boxes, seemingly to pack up Neferet's old things. Kalona was standing feet away from Thanatos, who was sitting at her desk. The room looked eerie, liked it needed a new, bright, paintjob. "Hello High Priestess." Liran said automatically, bowing to her as she walked up.

"Liran, you may call me Thanatos you know?" Thanatos began. "And you do not have to bow every time you see me."

"But I must Thanatos. It's the principle of the thing." Looking to Kalona she gave him a greeting. "Hello Kalona."

"Liran." He said in return.

"I'm here for my schedule." Liran said, turning back to Thanatos.

"Ah yes. I received the email for the High Priestess of the London House of Night about the classes you had. You only had five but we do not have one of your classes specifically so in actuality you will have only four class periods." Thanatos handed the fledgling her modified schedule. Liran was glancing at the schedule in wonder of which one of her classes were cut until Thanatos spoke up once more. "I do find it amazing that you took extra classes last year."

"I take it Mistress Annalisa told you of that?"

"Yes. And your… Difficulties in your first two years." Liran inhaled sharply. "I do hope that was alright. Annalisa thought it was important for me to know of it."

"No, not at all Thanatos. It is important for you to know."

Thanatos sighed and stood, revealing her clothing. A dress shirt and some nice jeans, obviously she was just working for half casual, half formal. "If you ever need anything at all Liran, you may come to me. Or even to Zoey and her friends. They will help you."

"Thank you Thanatos. I look forward to getting to know them all."

"They are nice kids. All of them."

"Yes they do seem nice." Liran paused. "If you don't mind me asking… That dark skinned boy I stopped form getting into a fight… Was he once a Raven Mocker?"

Kalona's interest peaked. "How could you tell? You could not possibly have known Rephiam was once a Raven Mocker."

"So he was?" Liran asked. "And no, I didn't know him before, but I could feel it from his spirit. He goes through a very hard change every night does he not?"

"Yes." Thanatos replied for Kalona. "As punishment for his misdeeds he changed into a raven with the sunrise and then back to a boy at nightfall."

Liran nodded. "I knew I felt spiritual change in him. He has a far different spirit as a bird than a human and the change is very obvious in his spirit."

"You truly are a powerful fledgling Liran." Thanatos said suddenly. "You could tell all that, just with a few moments with a person." Liran only nodded.

Kalona spoke up then. "You seem calm talking about my sons. Why is this so?"

"I studied them for a while. Wanting to be a member of the High Council I started to affiliate myself with all beings, Raven Mockers, and even you Kalona, were amongst the beings I have already studied."

"Quite studious."

Liran chuckled. "Yes. Thank you."

Thanatos looked at the clock on her desk and squared off her shoulders. "It is almost time for the announcements. Liran, please make your way to first period now. If you want I can have Kalona show you the way."

"I should be fine. Thank you Thanatos. Goodbye Kalona. Until later." Liran bowed once more and walked out of the room, reading her schedule as she did so.

House of Night/_Liran_

Blimy! What excitement! Spells and Rituals as my first period! Score! It says here that Beverly Missal is my teacher. I personally never heard of her before but I do hope she is a good teacher. This is my field of expertise and I would be fairly disappointed if I could teach the class better than she. My only issue is that my Music class was cut. Who is there to say that there isn't a class for Music? Though I have Drama, but it simply isn't the same. Perhaps I can speak to Thanatos to teach two classes of Music myself to fill up the spots I have free. Or perhaps just one class so that I can have a study hour. Oh bugger. Either way I have Spells and Rituals first, then no classes until fourth, Drama, then lunch, Spanish, and finally Equestrian Sciences. Overall I am happy with my new schedule; just the no Music class is bringing me down.

I get to first period and I am the first one there (minus the professor of course) which means I have time to talk to the professor. "Excuse me? Mistress Missal?" I called out to her.

She looked up at me and smiled. "Why hello. And you are?"

"Liran Sanders, I am the new student." I handed her my schedule for confirmation.

"Seems like you are. Let me get you your books and tell you where we are currently in the lesson."

We talked for a moment, getting to know each other a bit more. We especially talked about her tattoos with the musical notes and found that we both have a fondness for music. She too was upset about the lack of a true Music class but no bother. I only made others look bad in that class anyway. We laughed and chitchatted, finding that she too had a slight affinity for spirit. It had seemed that, even if she is a bad professor that I had found my favorite professor, besides Thanatos of course.

Fledglings started to arrive, those that came in early, and then the announcements rung, stating what was for lunch and such normal stuff. The bell rang for students to get to their class and my first day at the Tulsa House of Night officially began.

House of Night/_Liran_

After first period (it had seemed that I worried for nothing, though I had already gone over the topic with me old High Priestess and Spells and Rituals master Annalisa). It was then came my two hours of absolutely no classes. During the first class change I saw a few of Zoey's friends from last night as well as Rephiam and a blonde, curly hair red vampyre. I was slowly starting to piece different scenarios of what might have happened that would allow Nyx to grant such an honor of being human, even if he must change into a raven for his misfortunes and sins. I sat on a bench under a tree and thought (and people watched to be honest) as the minute bell rang. As the late bell rang I sighed and pulled out my iPod to search for some music to hear. Seeing as I was knew I could not do much of anything else. I could have gone to visit Amiron, but I'll do that with the next period.

It was as I put the headphones in did I feel another presence above me. I did not move or give off any sign that I noticed him; for it was a male I could feel it. Instead I worked on feeling his spirit and reading him. I knew exactly who he was and thus felt no fear. As Jessie J played in my ears I started to know a lot more about him before I decided that what I was doing was technically an invasion of privacy and stopped. Instead I vouched to actually strike up a conversation. "You know, I do feel your presence. You can't possibly hide from me." From above (and even through my music though I admit, I never play my music loud in fear of tinnitus) I heard sounds of a startled shuffle. I couldn't help but giggled. _I _had startled _him_. What an ironic turn of events. I turned my head towards the tree and looked for movement or eyes. I found both. "You are Nisroc aren't you? Your father and I were talking about you yesterday night."

"My father?" Nisroc hissed out in inquiry.

"Yes. But no need to fear," I said, turning off my music and standing. "It wasn't anything bad. He was just wondering why I haven't revealed you." He didn't reply but instead moved further into the tree. I sighed and gave myself a little spirit before abandoning my items on the bench and climbing up the tree. Nisroc moved quickly away and was moving as if he were to fly away. "Wait! Hold up!" I yelled reaching out to him without a second thought. "I just want to talk. I'm bored as bloody hell here." I carefully positioned myself so that my back was to the trunk of the tree and I was looking up at him since I could not climb to the branch he was on since it was too thin for me. We stared at each other for what seemed like hours before I cracked a grin. "Crickey!" I said, my accent coming out strongly. "You Raven Mockers are far creepier in real life. You're just so _big_! I never thought that…" My words faded out into nothing and his stare soon shifted from a near visible fear to confusion. My grin grew larger. Despite all I've read and perceived Raven Mockers do seem to show a lot of emotion. Or perhaps it was because he was the second born behind Rephiam (a little piece of information I discovered in my 'invasion of property'). "Well? It takes two to talk mate."

Nisroc shifted uncomfortably and I could not help but feel a bit guilty for pressing. For all these years, centuries even, they have been frowned and looked down upon and been perceived as monsters. I being a huge advocate for 'monsters' and my personal belief in that people can be different than perceived, I just could not accept that he was a beast for horrid proportions, not when he was showing discomfort and nervousness in the way he moved. "I am Liran Sanders." I said slowly extending a hand out. "I come from the Britain, well, technically Ireland, but my family moved when I was very young so…" I shrugged and giggled to myself. "Hell, I'm from the UK, let's just leave it like that shall we?"

The Raven Mocker looked at my extended hand as if it just erupted into a can of worms or some insane nonsense. I sighed and started to retract my hand back when his hand slowly came out and took mine gingerly. This was another thing that surprised me. They have always been perceived with claws or talons for hands, I could see that it was right for the feet, and the head was indeed bird and the body was covered in pitch black feathers, and despite my spiel on not believing everything I read in myths in legends until actually seeing it for oneself, I still was hoping that they had claws. But there was something behind our touch that made my spirit become aflame. My chest started to feel heavy and my body became increasingly tense and I could feel my eyes brighten with spirit. He released my hand since the sudden change in brightness in my eye must have started him and the warmth that he gave off was suddenly gone and I felt normal, well, partially. I still felt as if my chest was heavy.

"Oh…" I groaned, not liking at all this new feeling. "Goddess…"

"You… Alright?" Nisroc asked me which sadly surprised me.

"Yes. I just feel…"

"Sssstrange?" He hissed out.

"Yeah." I answered simply.

We stared at each other and then the bell rang scaring me out of my wits end. I screamed and started to fall off the branch, in fact I did fall. I expected to crash into the bench below or the ground but instead I was caught by strong arms and was cradled in a chest full of feathers. I opened my eyes and looked up into the dark red eyes of the Raven Mocker who saved me. "T-thank you." I stuttered out faintly. He only nodded and set me down on my feet. Soon fledglings were coming out into our area and I started to panic. "You must go if you want to remain hidden! Go Nisroc! Go!"

"You are… Fine?" He asked me.

"Yes perfectly. Just go! Please!" Without another moment Nisroc shot up into the sky causing a bit of wind to circulate around me. I stood there, fledglings changing class before me, laughing, joking, kissing, whatever, and I just stood there wondering what in the world processed me to beg Nisroc to leave.

House of Night/_No POV_

The bell had rung for classes to end and fledglings left their classrooms, some in a hurry, others slowly while they collected their things and waited for friends. Zoey, Stark, Rephiam and Stevie Rae met up in one area immediately after class ended. "Howdy y'all." Stevie Rae greeted as she and Rephiam walked up, holding hands, to the already waiting Stark and Zoey.

"Hey Stevie Rae." Both Zoey and Stark said at the same time.

"Hey Rephiam." Stark greeted Rephiam. The two had switched back to their originally second period sword class but Rephiam went one way to meet up with Stevie Rae while Stark did the same with Zoey.

"Hello Stark. Zoey." Rephiam said in greeting, their conversation a bit rushed due to the short time between classes.

"So, hey," Zoey began, "what do you guys think about the new girl? I mean, she's obviously really powerful. Did you see what she did last night?"

Rephiam nodded. He was able to feel the extent of her power first hand. How her eyes and even her voice held power over him and forced him and Dallas to end their impending fight prematurely. "She is very powerful. Yet there's something else. Last night as she stopped the fight I could feel part of her being."

"How so Rephiam?"

"I don't know how to explain it…" Rephiam said slowly, his voice fading out as he thought. "It was much like a bond almost but obviously there's nothing there. It was as if I could feel what she was feeling and get a small read on her personality but it wasn't completely there."

"I could feel it too." Stark added. "When we got there, I could feel a strong emotion in the air, but there was like… I don't know. Kindness with some lingering feeling." Rephiam nodded in agreement.

Stevie Rae sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. "I really don't know y'all but what I do know that if we don't get a move on we'll soon be late for third period."

"Oh shoot!" Zoey said as she glanced at her phone's time. "Stevie Rae's right. We've gotta get to class."

"Alright then." Stark said. "I guess we'll see each other at lunch, along with the others. We'll continue this conversation then."

"Sounds like a plan." Stevie Rae commented. The four friends said their goodbyes and went their separate ways to their third periods.

* * *

><p><em><strong>PLEASE REVIEW!<strong>_ Sorry for the short Zoey/Gang moment. I was hoping to make it longer but I just decided to put it as a completely different chapter so, case in point, the next chapter is the lunchtime conversation with more Thanatos/Kalona moments and hopefully a Lenobia/Travis.

So what did you think of Nisroc/Liran's first meeting? _**PLEASE REVIEW! **__Or favorite/alert or whatever, that words too._


	5. Chapter 5

House of Night/_Rephiam_

At lunch we had gathered around our table as we normally do. Shaunee had begun the conversation at the table. "Today actually has seemed normal today." She stated sounding really surprised.

"Yeah I know right?" Stevie Rae agreed. "It's been really quiet too. Like really no problems today in vamp land."

"It almost seems too good to be true." Shaunee continued.

"It almost seems to me that everyone is like this because of the new girl." Damien said softly.

Erin raised a brow at him. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, just listen closely to all the conversations around us."

We all tuned our ears towards the others around us. As it turns out, Damien was correct.

"Did you see what she did last night? It was amazing!"

"Yeah I did! It was so beautiful!"

"She's pretty hot! And has a sexy British accent!"

"I heard that she comes straight from the UK."

"Last night as she sung, I felt so alive! Like really!"

"And happy too!"

"Her name's Liran Sanders…"

"Wow…" Aphrodite breathed out. "Looks like home girl's already got a huge popularity."

"And it's a positive one." I added. "It's a good thing. I would not want her to have a bad reception. Especially after she stopped me from doing something idiotic."

Stevie Rae snorted and took my hand in hers. "Dallas deserves a big smack down Rephiam, so _that's _not idiotic."

"But doing it on school property is." Damien said.

Stark chuckled. "Yeah, so we owe her out thanks. At least Rephiam does. But hey, she seems like a pretty kick ass, cool, little chick. Maybe we should welcome her into our group."

"Nu-huh Arrow Boy." Aphrodite said shaking her head. "We already have Shaylin who _might _become a member of our little herd and I really don't think we need another."

"But the more we have in numbers, the stronger we will be against Neferet." I stated. This was the truth. Alone, or even in pairs, we could not face her, we needed all of us, as well as other helping hands.

Zoey sighed and drank some water which was strange because typically she would grab a soda if there is any and today was one of those days that there was in fact 'pop'. "Rephiam's right. But I don't know. Something's off about her you know."

"Yeah." Stevie Rae agreed. "There's somethin' under the surface of that girl, somethin' that she keeps under lock and key ya know?" At that moment Shaylin sat beside Erin and greeted the others. "Hey Shaylin, how was your day so far?"

"Oh it was good. But I'm getting sick and tired of seeing all these colors and hearing about that new girl."

"Liran Sanders?" Stark asked even though we all knew which girl the red fledgling was talking about.

"Of course, who else?" She rolled her eyes dramatically. "All day it's been something about that girl. Even the professors seem to be all wrapped up in her."

"What she did last night was some pretty powerful stuff." Shaunee said. "It's a wonder we're not hearing it _more_."

The young red fledgling groaned. "Well I hope not. I'm about to blow my brains out."

"Don't look now…" Erin said suddenly, "but there's Dallas and his little group."

We all seemed to move our heads at the same time to the lunch line. There stood Liran helping herself to a lot of salad as Dallas and his gang of evil red fledglings come up to her. Dallas looks mad, probably abut last night, for he's the only one talking and the others are standing behind him, seemingly trying to make him seem stronger. She was ignoring him, focusing more on her food than the stubborn jackass he is. He then placed a hand on her and turned her around. Now seeing her face I could see that she was getting mad herself. She talks to him. They are too far away but I can guess that it is an argument between the both of them. She seems to be winning but then the gang move in closer and she starts to back away, her face twisting with anger and worry, but I had a strange feeling that the worry wasn't about them attacking her, but for something else. Suddenly from out of the blue my father stood between Dallas and his gang and Liran and the red fledglings and vampyre backed away almost instantly. Father seemed to be bearing down on them with his words and soon the gang turned away and Kalona talked with Liran for a moment before returning to Thanatos' side.

"Woah…" Erin exclaimed softly. "That was crazy. Kalona just seemed to pop up in there."

I nodded. "He used his great speed to get between them."

Shaylin was following Liran with her eyes as I soon noticed. When Liran sat down I could see Shaylin pull her eyes away and start to focus on her food. I, intrigued, conversed with Shaylin. "What do you see?" It seemed my question brought me some looks, even from Stevie Rae, but I ignored them and soon they too focused their gaze on Shaylin.

The girl sighed and placed her fork back down on the tray. "It's hard to explain. I see purple, for spirit, and some sort of shade of pink but then there's also white and black. And also some yellow…"

"All those colors?" Damien asked. "What could those others mean?"

Shaylin shrugged. "You're asking the wrong girl Damien. I really don't know."

I looked over at Liran and saw that some male fledglings have joined her for lunch, I even some females get up from their tables and head towards her. She seemed uncomfortable, as if these new people surrounding her, no doubt bombarding her with questions, were really not her cup of tea. I smiled faintly. I may have been a human for a short while, but I knew enough about other countries of the world to know that in the United Kingdom one of the specialties over there is tea.

The conversation switched to the classes we had and the projects we were given in most of our classes. I glanced quickly at my father before joining in on my friends' conversation.

House of Night/_No POV_

Kalona sighed and watched the fledglings and very few vampyres eat their lunch. Though today had been a bit better than yesterday it was still a bad day. He needed to earn the respect and trust of his students (it was still strange for him to call them as such) and not only that but he had his own relationship with his son Rephiam that he needed to patch up. Though Kalona was sure that his son had forgiven him, Kalona wants a better relationship with his favorite and first born son and it didn't help that lately he had been too busy to truly talk to Rephiam thanks to his classes and getting into the swing of things.

Thanatos beside him tried to make things simpler on the both of them. She realizes that taking Kalona on as he Warrior and in turn as the school's Sword Master may be a damper on her status but what else was she to do? She does truly believe that this position should bring some sort of enlightenment to the fallen Warrior and she only hopes to Nyx that she made the right choice about Kalona. Already their bond had brought her close to the Warrior and much to her surprise he had been extremely open with her on their first night of Warrior and High Priestess.

Flashback, Three Moons Ago/_No POV_

Thanatos was running towards the teachers' dorms, worried about her cat. She had brought him from Italy with her of course. She would never leave behind her dear and beloved Chartreux, Midnight, in Italy. Thanatos ran into the dorms and into her room, immediately seeing the mangled body of the solid black little cat. "_No!_" The scream had echoed throughout the halls and she didn't doubt that the scream could have been heard outside as well. She was going to run to the cat when she felt a pair of well muscled arms surround her, holding her back to a wall of hard chest. It was Kalona, the Fallen Warrior of Nyx.

"Thanatos," he called her by her name, "it is all right." The words, though as stiff as they were since the situation between the two had been very awkward as first were still able to calm her down, if only by a fraction. Her body shook with convulsions and sobs. She wanted to hold her cat in her arms but she knew if that were to happen, her current condition may worsen. Kalona held her to him, driving her slowly around the cat's lifeless body to the bed. He sat first, leaning against the headboard, before pulling her down in his lap. All of these motions had been merely instinct as he slowly started to rub his hands up and down the length of Thanatos' arms, repeating words of comfort softly to her. "It is all right Thanatos… Shh… It's going to be all right… Shh…"

That was when she turned in his arms, not wanting to see the scene before her, and started to sob into his shoulder. She hardly ever showed such emotion but as all vampyres with their animals, she had a strong bond with her cat and thus felt entirely heartbroken. Besides, as a human, she had always let her emotions out as such.

After Thanatos' sobs had quieted down to mere hiccups and her trying to regain some breath Kalona found that he started talking about himself. "I do have to admit that I have no idea why I pledged myself to you." This made Thanatos tense up slightly but he did not feel it. "It just felt like the right thing in my heart… But the thing was that I promised myself I would never become a Warrior again, not after what happened with Nyx…" There was a pause before he continued. "To tell you the truth, I wanted to repay the old Sword Master, Dragon. He had sacrificed his life for my son, the one who killed his mate, and I felt that it was only right that I take his position. I also want to rekindle the relationship I had with Rephiam. It has been a while since we had a very close relationship with each other since…" He drifted off but he did not need to go farther, Thanatos knew.

"Kalona…" Thanatos drawled out slowly as she lifted himself from his shoulder and started to wipe her eyes away of any stray tears. "I do not judge you, not anymore anyway since of our bond, but I do want you to know that I will try to make this easy on the both of us. And if you need anything, please, feel free to ask me." The Fallen Warrior nodded his head once. Thanatos inhaled and looked at her cat's body. "I suppose I will give a prayer and then clean up—"

"I will clean up." Kalona said as she was standing. "You say your prayers; I do not want you to push yourself too far with this." He stood too and placed one hand over the other in a true Warrior pose. Thanatos nodded and prayed over the body of her cat, he staying in the spot where he stood until she finished. Kalona made quick work of the body and moved carefully outside, Thanatos following behind for without saying a word the two knew that a funeral was to be held. Once outside a hole was dug and Midnight's body was placed gently into the hole and then covered up. Thanatos prayed over her friend once more and together the two moved back into the dorms for Thanatos was in desperate need of a bath and Kalona still had some floor cleaning to do.

End of flashback/_No POV_

Though all was still awkward between the two it wouldn't be more natural the connection between them because of their newly formed bond. It was times like that moment that made everything feel right. And perhaps it was the fact that Thanatos knew a bit about Darkness and understood it that made her sympathize with the Fallen Warrior and all of his sons, specifically that of Rephiam. The two, despite how much two would not like to admit it (Kalona for the reason that he doesn't want his son to turn out like him and Rephiam because he does not want to turn into his father), were very much alike in their paths of life and yet all at once are completely different. Thanatos saw the relationship between Kalona and his son quite intriguing. She could tell that there was pure love coming from both parties and yet because of their being on two completely sides of the river of spiritual refuge there is also hatred or even a fear of the other.

Kalona sighed and rolled his shoulders, his wings lifting up gently before dropping back to a resting position. Seeing as he no longer needed to hide away from the other fledglings, the immortal decided he wouldn't waste his energy trying to hide his wings when _everyone _knew who and what he was. Kalona too was thinking of his current situation just as Thanatos was. He too finds it quite odd, their predicament. Though, admittedly, Kalona did feel as if now he had a purpose in life being a Warrior again. It felt like it is the thing he should be doing, not matter if it isn't for the Goddess Nyx or not, it is the position that his body, soul and heart yearn for. In all actuality Kalona thinks he is quite over the Goddess, at least for the whole 'I-banish-you-to-Earth' thing. With all that has happened (plus this new bond) he has come to terms with the whole thing and is (slightly reluctantly) agreeing with the Goddess that his actions which led to his banishment were extremely out of line. If only he could truly apologize to the Goddess, and to Erebus for that matter.

"Lunch is almost over." Thanatos said suddenly breaking Kalona from his thoughts. "We need to leave before all these fledglings rush out."

Kalona scoffed slightly. "Rush out? Who would want to miss any classes Thanatos?"

The Death Mistress paused and looked at her Warrior. "Did you… Did you just make a joke?" He shrugged in return. She smiled at him. "Watch it Kalona. Your humanity is showing." She joked back before collecting her things and making her way out. Kalona too smiled, if not faintly, and copied Thanatos.

Stables/_Lenobia POV_

I usually ate in the stables but today I didn't feel like being alone, even though with the horses I am never alone. So I ate in the cafeteria today with the other professors. I didn't speak much really. I was just there enjoying the company of others. I have been told, several times, that I at times become very anti-social because I prefer horses to people, which is true horses are much better creatures than that of other beings. But whatever the case may be I just felt like eating with the others. My mind was blank; no thoughts passed through my head not a thing, not even a single worry. As it turns out because of this and the fact that I didn't speak as much I finished before everyone else and ended up leaving the cafeteria early to head back to the stables, which is where I am now. I was with Mujaji in her stall, brushing her down when I heard the stall door open. I tensed, knowing it could only be one of two people and I had a slight (more like heavy) suspicion that I knew who he was.

Turns out, I was right. Travis once again trapped me within the stall, standing point blank in the middle of the doorway, his arms crossed and his face scowling at me. I turned my head back to Mujaji and hoped to Nyx that he would leave. Of course he would not. "Okay," he said quickly, his voice laden with annoyance and even anger. "I know that I probably shouldn't have kissed you like that but is this really necessary?" I pretended to not hear the question. "Lenobia." He called my name thickly. "Look, I'm not meaning to cause any disrespect but you're my boss, you're supposed to have a tighter grip on this and yet—"his hands fell onto the sides of his legs quickly emanating a sound that surprised Mujaji but didn't frighten her. He stayed silent, and in that so did I, as we both waited for something, _anything_, to happen. He sighed and out of the corner of my eye I could see him take off his hat and run a hand through it. "Jesus H. Christ…" He grumbled softly. "Look I'm sorry for kissing you alright?" He said, his voice softening now. "I just…" He sighed again. "I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

But I _did _want it to happen again that was the thing, it just couldn't, and I wouldn't let it. He was backing out of the stall, my heart was pounding, and I felt as if I was close to tears. He was turning out when a word escaped my lips without my wanting. "Wait." He stopped, his body half turned away from me but his eyes looking straight at me. I exhaled deeply, I starting to use Mujaji's strong and stable body for support. "Please…" I started out, not really knowing where I was going with this. "Please understand Travis, I am… You are a human."

Travis turned fully towards me and scoffed. "And that's a justifiable reason why you're acting like this?" He asked sarcastically and angrily.

"Yes!" I said loudly. I could feel all the horses in the barn be surprised by that outburst and I suddenly did not need Mujaji for support. I turned and looked him dead in the eye. "You are a human." I repeated again, enunciating every word. "You will die before I do. No matter what. I have had my heart broken before for falling in love with a human. I will not make the same mistake twice do you understand me?" Beside me Mujaji was becoming frightened, my voice was thick and heavy and I was sure that the glare I was giving Travis would kill. I was even starting to scare _myself_. When he didn't reply quickly I repeated my question. "Do you understand me Mr. Foster?" He stared at me, his face clear of any emotions. He didn't seem to fear me or anything. He just stood there, staring at me. "W-what?" My voice broke, my anger breaking under his gaze and my heart becoming heavy with regret for yelling as such and acting superior even though I am his boss.

Then very softly, came the words I never truly expected to hear. "How'd he break your heart?"

I was taken aback. "Uh… W-well it wasn't him… Per say…" I drawled out slowly, not wanting to live out the story again of my first and last love of my life.

"What happened?" He pressed gently, coming closer to me.

I backed up. "I-it's nothing really. It just wasn't his fault, but someone else's."

"Lenobia…" He called out his hand reaching out for me.

"Look. I j-just can't! I mean… I don't want to… I-I…"

"Lenobia…" He whispered to me. My back was up against the wall and he stood just two feet from me, his eyes soft and caring, much like _his_ was so very long ago. "What happened?" He repeated, enunciating the words carefully and slowly.

I felt myself starting to break under his gaze. I wanted to tell him. Not only what happened but who he really is. What he is. I wanted to give what we have between us a chance. I wanted nothing more but to move into his arms and kiss him while tears flowed from my eyes. But as my luck usually plays out, I would not get that chance.

The bell started to ring for lunch to end and for all students and teachers to return back to their classes. I snapped out of my haze as did the cowboy and I quickly stepped around him and towards the opening of the stall, a horse brush still in hand. I paused at the doorway and turned back. Travis was looking at me, his eyes reading curiosity and compassion. "Just know Travis that it wasn't his fault. There was a man who wanted me for his own. He was evil and cruel and he tried all he did to tear us apart and just as we would have our chance to start our lives together this man ripped him away from me within moments, all because he was trying to save me from dying. It was not his fault, but mines. I would have kept my distance on the ship over to the New World and did as I should have, none of this would have happened."

"But then you would have never met him, never fall in love with him." Travis commented.

"Yes." I agreed as a tear escaped my eye and I thank the Goddess that my next class was a free period. I had nothing else to say so I bowed my head, mostly to hide the tears that were starting to fall. "I apologize, Travis, but I can't help you this period with the horses. I'm sorry." I turned quickly, a sob breaking through, and I charged upstairs, dropping the horse brush in the middle of the stable hallway as I did so.

* * *

><p><em><strong>PLEASE REVIEW!<strong>_Next chapter: Liran walks into the barn to see Travis by himself with the other students. Knowing something is wrong she takes things into her own hands and strives to fix the relationship between the Horse Mistress and her cowboy. Mainly Lenobia/Travis with some Liran/Nisroc by the end of the chapter.

_**PLEASE REVIEW! THE MORE REVIEWS THE FASTER I UPDATE! TRUE STORY! PLEASE REVIEW!**_


	6. Chapter 6

Stables/_Liran_

After a long night at school I was happy to be heading to Equestrian Studies and see my Amiron. I had thought to visit him earlier today but I figured I had to familiarize myself with the grounds and organize my room a bit. Which miraculously I have the room to myself. I heard that it was the room of one of the red fledglings and her roommate but they live somewhere off grounds. I found it strange hearing also that the roommate was human and still attended this school but all sorts of strange occurrences have been happening at the Tulsa House of Night thanks to Nyx and her involvement, and I should know.

Anyways I walked into the stables, excited since it was one of my favorite classes and I arrived just as the late bell rung. I was about to say hello to my class, since I am an extreme social butterfly and love greeting my fellow classmates, when I saw that they were all at their horses already and Travis was helping around the barn. But once again no Lenobia. I just took the memo that I go straight to my horse, which I did, but along the way Travis intercepted me.

"Howdy Liran." He greeted me and with that accent I once again couldn't help but smile.

"Well howdy." I mocked slightly. I giggled when he grinned back, obviously taking no offence.

"I just wanted to know if you needed to know anything or what?"

"No, I should be good." He nodded and then I thought of something. "But I was wondering if you have any jumps?"

"Jumps? As is show jumping?"

"The very same. See, I taught Amiron here how to show jump, do steeplechase and herd sheep and other livestock. I tried dressage but he just would not have it. Besides that he's very well rounded and I wouldn't want him to lose his show jumping prowess. He's a champ over in the UK."

"Hm." The cowboy sounded, impressed with Amiron's skills. From around I could feel the stares and hear the whispers, no doubt about me. I have been hearing it all day. "I would have to ask Lenobia. I haven't been here that long either so…" He faded out and I restrained myself from raising a brow.

"Where is Lenobia? I have yet to meet her." I was going to add 'And as the professor she is showing extreme misconduct for not meeting her new exchange student' but I felt that the statement would be a bit too much.

There was that air again I felt before but this time it felt a bit lighter but still very strained. I can tell he was uncomfortable with the subject at hand, it was written all over his face. I noticed as well that the students now have stopped whispering and was not watching the events unfolding before them. I guess they too were wondering where their Horse Mistress is. Travis soon replied. "She… She's up in her room… I'm sure she'll be down soon to—"

As soon as she said that Lenobia was walking down the stairs and entering the hall. Everyone's attention turned to her but her gaze was only on me. "You must be Liran Sanders, our exchange student." She wore jeans and a form fitted t-shirt. She looked no older than seventeen at the most, and I should know, I am seventeen turning eighteen in June. I nodded and walked out to her to grasp her forearm in greeting. "I took a look at your horse, Amiron, yesterday. He sure is a fine pony."

"Thank you. Though sometimes he can be a pain in the you-know-where."

Lenobia chuckled. "Yes well, most horses have a personality that demands for attention and such, especially little ponies who think they are the tallest creatures on earth."

"Amiron knows he is short, he wishes he was tall, but he does have an issue with being called little." I commented and from somewhere in the barn I heard Amiron neigh in agreement.

Lenobia chuckled, I guess at Amiron, and agreed. "Yes well, I overheard that you wanted to know if we had any jumps for your horse and I'm happy to say that we do. Though we have not used them in years, you are free to pull them out of storage and set it up for you and Amiron to practice. Who knows, maybe before the year ends you can enter the summer jumping competitions here in Tulsa or perhaps Oklahoma City or Dallas or even Fort Worth." There was a short pause where I was about to speak when she suddenly sounded out "Oh! This will be the first year in centuries that we will have someone participate in a horse competition! I must help you with this. I will have to make this part of your grade! You would be just the student to start this up again!" She clapped her hands together, her excitement bubbling over like that of a newborn leanbh fondling over a cat toy they somehow got their grubby little hands upon. "I could do sign ups and we could have a group of students entering the competitions. Yes this could be done!" She then turned away and walked down the hall next to my stall muttering something about wither she should enter herself.

I held back a laugh at the childlike professor and sighed, giving a slight shrug as I did so. "Well… This will be fun." After that statement everything seemed to go back to normal except for the whispers that were no doubt still all about me. I sighed again and headed towards Amiron when I suddenly recognized one of the students. Her name was Zoey Redbird if I remember correctly. I caught a whiff (not like a smell whiff but a feel) of her spirit and there was so much to it, so much of everything that it could never have a rest period. The girl was so messed up that her spirit could not even decide what it was feeling at any given point. I was so enamored with the complex spirit that I ran into one of those little step stools and fell flat on my face. The students erupted into laughter and me, not a type to get all brassed off just by a few people laughing stood and laughed with them putting on a ditzy ginger routine.

I quickly moved to Amiron, closing myself into the stall with him. "How's been your day Amiron ol' boy?" I greeted him, my Irish-Brit accent totally slanging the words. He neighed annoyingly. I suspected that the plane ride, time change and the fact that he can't really sleep during the day and being practically awake all night (I'm guessing) made him grouchy. "Well don't get your knickers in a twist Amiron. You probably should have gone to sleep." He neighed again begrudgingly and I started with the whole brush your horse and make sure he's okay routine, taking him out of the stable for a quick walk around the pasture behind the barn. No one else took their horses out but I wasn't in a big hurry for I was staying after.

I know that there is something amiss between Lenobia and her stable hand and I want to get to the bottom of it and make stable life here at the House of Night a bit easier to handle. The bell rung for classes to end and that is when I started to lead Amiron back in. I took my time getting him untacked and it did not seem to bother nether Lenobia or Travis though the human did ask if I would rather have him do it rather than me so I could go off and study or socialize or some bollocks but I said no of course. Once I was all done I bid them goodbye and quickly went to the shadows on the side of the barn. I slid down to the ground and calmed myself first.

I breathed out and reached down the front of my shirt and pulled out my necklace. The chain was gold and at the end was a rose gold colored decorated shield of an ancient Celtic king with four gold panels of intricately entwined Celtic knots with one amethyst gem in the center. The pendant came to a rest right between my breast and my right hand came up and held it tightly, the warmth of my hand causing the gem in the center to burn with acknowledgement of its master. I sighed shakily, my nerves getting the best of me. Before I backed out of my current scheme and quickly dug into my bag for the purple tea lights and lighter I always carry with me. I push off from the barn's wall and put four of the purple tea lights in each other the four secondary directions (southwest, southeast, northwest and north east) and lit them all in no particular order and then lit the fifth tea light and held it in my hands. I faced the barn, the northwest direction miraculously, and before I began I asked for Nyx's forgiveness.

"Oh my Goddess of Night… Please forgive me for what I am about to do. But I feel as if I must involve myself in these matters. I only hope that you can see what I see and know that I must do this so please… Please forgive me." I did one last calming breath and closed my eyes before reciting over and over "I call upon the power of Spirit that of my spirit that of the earth's and wind's spirit, that of fire's and water's spirit." Soon I could feel the elements come to me but it was not _them _but their inner power, the power that connects the vampyres in a ceremony, the spirit. I rolled my shoulders back, my eyes still closed as I changed the recitations. "Cast a spell upon these two souls and give me the power to help them through their path of enlightenment. I wish to peer into their souls, see what is bothering them ad know if there is anything I may do to calm these two troubled souls and bring them to happiness. I beg of you Spirit, grant me access to your power; grant me the power to see." I opened my eyes and all seemed to stop around me and soon I was no longer in my body but a spirit wandering on earth.

I walked through the walls of the barn and saw that Travis and Lenobia were frozen in place, just as the spell should be. I would only have moments and there was no time to wait. My pendant started to glow, especially that of the gem, and even start to levitate of my chest. My eyes began to glow too; I could feel it, the power flowing into my eyes. I then could see that their spirits were connected. And it was not just a thin connection, oh no. It was as if their spirits would be one in any moment if the thing standing in their way was taken away. I neared them, knowing that if I got too close bad things might happen. As I go closer the connection between the two grew aware of my presence and reacted violently, almost defensively and I do not blame it.

"You should not worry of me." I told it, being extremely cautious. "I am here to help. I want these two bodies that you inhabit become happy for it is obvious to me that there is a connection between them… You." The connection shivered a very faint sound rippling through the air. "Please… I want to help but you must allow me passage into the connection the soul have together. I must know to help you must believe me."

The connection glowed brightly and began to flash. It did not trust me. "Please!" I urged. I could see the spell was starting to fade and that time was soon to be resuming. "I will not be able to do this again. Just show me what the problem is and let me help!"

The connection felt my urgency and reluctantly let me in. It stretched out into an orb and I looked closely into it, being careful not to overstep the boundaries. Inside an image appeared that of a younger Lenobia (not by much) wearing a French style of dress in the holding pens on a ship, a stable hand beside two Percherons. They seemed to be in love and then a light appeared and a pope of sorts appeared, I could see the Darkness around him. The image then change to a big fire near a stable and Lenobia crying besides a Tracker and sadness and anguish in the air. The image stopped and I gasped and backed away. "She fears… She fears she will be heartbroken again. She knows it is him and yet she…" My pendant was burning me through my shirt, warning me that time was almost up. "There must be a way to let him know. To-to give him a hint. He has to remember his past life. He must find his inner Martin." I do not know where that name came from but the connection glowed, agreeing with me. "But what? What can I do to help you?"

It glowed and shivered and whined. Time was resuming around me, Lenobia and Travis were beginning to move. "Let me know! What must I do?" I heard a faint voice in the air and I was straining to hear it but then my pendant slammed back against my chest and pushed me back away from them and out through the wall and back into my body.

I gasped loudly as the spell ended by its own accord and the flames of my candles were snuffed out by the wind. My eyes returned to normal and the pendant soon cooled and came to a rest upon my breast. I tried to breathe but I could not. I was gasping. The air where I had done the spell was too thick. I tried to break the circle, to see if that would help, but losing breath quickly I couldn't release Spirit and it was starting to consume me. My vision was going and then from the corner of my eyes I saw a dark figure fly down and look at me with red eyes. "You musssst ssssstop…" It hissed at me. It was Nisroc.

"I… I can't." I gasped out.

"Break it…" He urged, cautiously stepping forward. I could see that he was looking past me. "It comesss…"

I gasped and turned my head to look at what he was looking at and my eyes widened. Tendrils were creeping forward, attracted to the power my spell gave off. I must of froze because the next thing I know Nisroc appeared between me and the tendrils. "You not harm her… I ussse my father'ssss power…" He drawled out. "_Liran_…" He hissed my name. It startled me that he knew my name but I soon remembered that we did properly introduce ourselves when we first met (or truth be told the second time we met). I snapped out of it and quickly fought my loss of oxygen to break the circle.

"Spirit… I release you! I release you!" I gasped out and Spirit left in a violent haze. The air became light again and I was able to breathe. I looked over to where the tendrils last were and I noticed that they had gone. I sighed and hung me head down as I rested on my hands and knees.

I don't know how long I stayed like that but I soon felt a tentative clawed hand nudge my shoulder. I looked up to look straight into the beaked face of the Raven Mocker named Nisroc. He stood quickly, perhaps because my movement was too sudden or perhaps we were too close or both but none-the-less he stood and backed away from me. We stayed quiet, only staring at each other before he spoke. "You… Fine?"

"Yes I'm fine." I said quickly as I started to pack up (by this time the wax from the tea lights have hardened) and then eventually stood. "You… You saved me. You know that right?" I said gently, not knowing how that statement would affect the Raven Mocker.

It seemed to surprise him. His eyes widened and his wings flinched. "I ssssupossse…"

"No you did." I tried to convince him. "Not only from running out of air but from _that_." I point to where the tendrils were. "Trust me… You would _not _want me to fall into that… Into Darkness." He stared at me and my arm fell to my side. I had an internal battle with myself, wondering if I should say what I wanted to or not. Turns out I did want to say it. "I've been there before." His head lifted up in curiosity and I exhaled heavily. At least somebody else besides Thanatos knows now, except I wasn't too sure if Nisroc was to be that one other person. "Well thanks anyways for saving me and such." I said quickly, starting to back away. He nodded once. "Yeah… Thanks…" Before anything bad could happened I turned and rushed towards my dorm. As I rushed I could hear the sounds of wings working and the wind being sliced by a body moving up towards the night sky.

_Nisroc… _

Stables/_No POV_

Lenobia and Travis grunted softly. They looked around the stable. "Did you hear that?" They asked the other together. The two blushed slightly and nodded.

"It sounded like a girl." Travis said slowly, unsure on if he would sound insane or not.

Lenobia nodded. "Yes… She was talking to someone…"

"Did you catch anything of the conversation?"

Lenobia shook her head. "No, I did not." The Horse Mistress looked around the barn. "But the air is thicker…" Travis agreed with a curt nod.

"Should we investigate?" Travis asked.

Lenobia sighed. "It would be a good thing to do but… I hardly doubt it would be anything bad. The horses are not reacting to it badly."

"Yeah but…" Travis sounded slowly, feeling a bit suspicious at the whole thing.

Suddenly the air started to lift and the two looked at one another. Not understanding fully what just happened the two silently agree to check the perimeter of the barn. They turn to go in opposite directions, inspecting the barn closely as well as any other area. Lenobia stopped at where Liran was moments ago and Travis soon joined her. "It is stronger here."

"Hm-hmm." Travis sounded nodding his head. "Yeah, kind of thick with… I don't know… Something bad."

Liran inhaled worry starting to bubble inside her being. "Come on Travis. We bets ignore it for now. We still have work to finish up."

"Sure Lenobia." The two then walk back into the barn, they both equally suspicious of the night's events.

* * *

><p>Next chapter: News travels fast and the suspicious event at the barn the night before raise up some questions and all eyes are on Liran. Zoey and the gang question the exchange student about her past and she answers in a creative way.<p>

_**PLEASE REVIEW! **_


	7. Chapter 7

Next day, lunch/_No POV_

Liran sat by herself at lunch again. She really did not mind the solitude. Well, maybe a little bit. What was she to do though? Singing and showing such great power on her first day's not really a way to gain friends but what was she to do? If she didn't do anything those two boys would have gone into a big battle, she could feel it, the anger, jealously and of the like burning between the two. What she didn't expect (surprisingly) was that she would be the main topic of the school's rumor system. She had thought that perhaps with Rephiam attending school here, his father as the new Sword's Master under Thanatos, the new High Priestess that she would be far from the whispered words of the other fledglings and even faculty. But no. Just one little incident in public (and the mysterious event behind the barn) had all the eyes on Liran Sanders, exchange student from the great UK. Another thing she didn't suspect was that in this cramped lunchroom no one sat with her at this one end table which was completely empty. The table beside hers was packed but nope, no one's going to slide over for more room.

She sighed and forked her meal of a salad with fruits and crackers on the side. She could go for a nice bloody steak by now. "With bangers and mash and some mead from home." She sighed again. "Bloody hell…"

But then people came to sit with her, and not just any people. "Howdy." A blonde red vampyre said in greeting, nothing in hand as she pointed to the spot besides Liran. "May my friends and I join ya?"

Liran just nodded and watched as nine others took their seats at her table (since she sat at the end, only Stevie Rae sat besides her, Zoey sitting across from her). Stark sat beside Zoey, then Erin, Shaylin, Darius, and Aphrodite. Sitting beside Stevie Rae sat Rephiam followed by Shaunee and Damien. Needless to say most sat cramped on the seats across from Liran. Zoey began to speak up for the group. "Hi there. We just thought you might need some friends. I'm Zoey Red—"

"I know who you all are." Liran interrupted seeing straight through the "We think you need friends" persona they all had to them, knowing they wanted to know who she was. "You do not say you want to become a member of the High Council without knowing what is happening in vampyre news." She continued. "I know _exactly _who all of you are and I know you just want to know who _I _am so let us cut out the charade and get to it. That being said… What do you want to know from me?"

The others said quiet in shock. It was Aphrodite that spoke up first. "What the fuck are you?" Liran merely blinked, un-amused from the question.

"What she means to say," Damian quickly said, "is that you are a very powerful fledgling, powerful enough to materialize your spirit without even trying it seems. We just want to know why."

Liran sighed and forked some salad into her mouth. After swallowing she replied "You don't take shit and you practice your arse off."

Damian nodded in agreement. "We were also wondering about what you did with Dallas and Rephiam here."

Rephiam took the lead from there. "It seemed as if you had us under your control. We couldn't move."

"In a way you were. Actually, correction, you were. I influenced your soul to stop fighting and be good little kiddies." She took a sip of her water and added "Though of course… I got too into the music and started to control everyone else."

"So your power in influenced with your music?"

"Very much so. I mean I can use my spirit without singing but it just always helps to sing."

"You must have an affinity for music as well." Darius inquired.

Liran nodded. "And of course spirit, only spirit." Liran smiled. "And it looks that with me I complete the set of solo users." She took a glance at each of the other four element affinity fledglings. Looking at Zoey her eyes brightened. "You must always hear this but you are someone very unique for having all five. Besides Nyx herself I never heard of anyone with the affinity for all five."

Stark nodded and answered for Zoey. "Yeah she gets that a lot. But she's our very special girl and High Priestess—"

"But you are weak." Liran interrupted her voice thick.

Zoey jerked back in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"Looking at your soul now you are conflicted and just plain weak. You have all five elements and I understand that you probably won't be able to be as powerful as I am in one element due to the natural balance of the element, but you could be so much powerful than this, even as a third former. I am not recommending that you reach your full potential for all of the elements for it might very well rip your puny body apart, but I sense that your main element is spirit. Focus on that more than the others but do not totally lose focus on all the others. I would say forty percent for spirit leaving the rest with fifteen. But you need to focus more on your abilities and less on your social life. You are Zoey Redbird, destined to bring upon great changes in society. Don't think for one moment that your battles will be finished. I see great things for you but right now, I see nothing to be applauded for."

Stark stood in anger, palms slamming down on the table. This created a silence in the dining hall "You take that back. She has been through so much, and fought though it all, always coming up on top! She—"

"Sod off Warrior. The same goes for you." Liran looked at the other. "_All _of you. This is worse than watching The Secret Life of an American Teenager or whatever that show is called. One big drama after another. You all need to learn how to control your lives and interrogating me won't help."

"You've got some balls Sanders." Aphrodite remarked.

The table remained silent after that, tensions being high. Zoey then sighed. "She's right."

"What?" The others reacted (Stark sitting down and conversations once again starting back up in the dining hall quietly), besides Liran who refocused her attention onto Zoey.

"We still have so much to do and what have we truly been doing to prepare for it? The white bull is still out there as well as Neferet and I'm pretty sure the High Council has some doubt whether Neferet is bad or not still."

"Neferet has been such a successful vampyre High Priestess for years Zoey." Liran stated. "The High Council recognizes her as one of the greatest vampyres in the modern age. I hardly doubt that would accept anything from anyone until they see it for themselves first hand. And Neferet, as well as the white bull, would certainty never let that happen."

"You seem to know a lot about the Darkness Liran." Stevie Rae said. "I don't mean to pry but, why is that?"

Liran tensed slightly and looked over at the red vampyre. "It's a long story."

"Well we have the right to find out." Erin said quickly.

Liran blinked at the group before her. "In that case, would you like to hear the story straight out or through a show and song?"

Before anyone could reply Shaylin erupted (yelled) out "Show and song!" They all looked at the fledgling. "What? I want to hear her sing again. She's good. Despite all the commotion she brings with her."

"Fine then." Liran stood, picking up her tray once she stood. "I know the reds here must get underground before the sun rises but see if you can't come to the drama room for the story after seventh hour. It will not take more than seven minutes, ten minutes tops." Without waiting for a reply Liran turned and walked away, her hunger diminished to nothing.

Drama classroom, after 7th/_No POV_

The gang walked through the doors of the drama classroom to see Liran talking to Erik at the front of the classroom where the mini stage was. Erik nodded at Liran, seemingly ending their conversation before he spoke to the others. "Take a chair any chair. Be courteous, blah, blah, blah. She's taking this as a grade so…" Erik sat down at his desk and everyone moved to take a seat. Shaylin took a desk closer to Erik and she waved at him, grinning. Erik smiled softly and gave her a gentle wave back before focusing on the stage.

"So Erik, if she's taking this as a grade I can take something else as a grade too?" Stark asked.

"No."

"Damn it! My grade's low as balls in here!"

"Quiet!" Shaylin yelled. "Liran's gonna say something."

"Thank you Shaylin." Liran said. "Anyways, I did this song back in the UK after a string of incidents that will be explained within the song. If you find that this did not help you one bit, then I will explain it to all of you. So here goes…" Liran walked off the stage and stood off to the side where her iPod waited (attached to a speaker) for her to press the play button on the instrumental/background vocals version of her song. She pressed play and sighed, not prepared to relive the memories of her eternal damnation.

The music began to play (the background vocals singing); Liran began to use her spirit to create some sort of fog on the stage, for theatrical ascetics.

_Lord have mercy on my soul  
>For I have walked the sinful road<br>That I'm down on my knees  
>Lord have mercy on me, please<em>

As her first line came she slowly crossed onto the stage.

_Jesus, I must confess  
>That in all my loneliness<br>I've forsaken and I've sinned  
>Leaving fragments of a man so broken<em>

She came to a stop center stage, looking out towards the classroom and as she sang the last line she pointed out towards her audience, acting out her song.

_I could tell you what I've done  
>Or should I tell you where I went wrong?<em>

_Well the more that I start to play_  
><em>My deceitful, evil ways<em>  
><em>Keep on growing stronger by the day<em>

The spirit soon changed from a fog to men, humans by the look of it, as they surrounded her, seemingly trying to seduce her as she had once done to them.

_Oh lord have mercy on my soul  
>For I have walked a sinful road<br>So I'm gonna get down on my knees  
>Beg forgiveness to help set me free<br>Lord have mercy on me, please_

She tried to fight through them, trying to get free and repent to the Goddess Nyx. She broke apart and the men disappeared and a statue like materialization of Nyx appeared.

_Mother Mary full of grace  
>In my weakness, I've lost faith<br>I've been careless, and I have been warned  
>And the devil inside me is torn<br>God bless the men that I have scorned_

The statue disappeared and as she sang the chorus the men appeared again, this time with chains and were entrapping her in her sins.

_Oh lord have mercy on my soul  
>For I have walked the sinful road<br>So I'm gonna get down on my knees  
>Beg forgiveness to help set me free<br>Lord have mercy on me, please_

As she vocalized she continued to fight with the men, never seeming to catch a break.

_Woah, woah yeah, yeah  
>Woah yeah, yeah oh, oh<br>Oh-oh yeah, yeah, yeah, ohh_

The statue appeared again behind Liran and the men and Liran turned her back to the audience and fought through to stand before the statue, singing the next few verses to Nyx, begging for her help.

_So don't let me fool around no more  
>Send your angels down to guide me through that door<br>Well I've gone and confessed my regrets  
>And I pray I'm not held in contempt<br>I'm so lost, and I need you to help me repent_

Liran started to walk backwards as she sang, the statue slowly disappearing as she did so. When it was fully gone she turned to face the gang below.

_Oh lord have mercy on my soul  
>Oh I'm begging, I'm pleading, I'm needing<br>I want you to know  
>So I'm down upon my knees<em>

Finally falling to her knees (the men still having her in chains), Liran prepared herself for the last note.

_Oh lord, I need forgiveness_

As she sang the last line to the song she raised one arm up and was slowly leaning backwards while a large form (Nyx) passed her hand through the men, making them go away (as well as the chains) before seemingly slipping into Liran.

_I need forgiveness from you..._

When the song finished Liran sprung back up into a sitting position, watching the expressions of the other fledglings and vampyres in the room. Another song began to play and the Brit stood and turned off her iPod, pocketing it before going back onto the stage. "What?"

"That was really good!" Shaylin complimented.

"It was really good. I could feel so much emotion behind every lyric." Shaunee stated.

"That and I really couldn't understand it." Stark said.

Liran sighed. "Pretty much what happened is that when I went to the London House of Night I was already pretty powerful in spirit. My whole life revolves around in and because of that I was immediately inducted into the Dark Daughters. Needless to say the leader was pretty dark. She made me influence and seduce male humans for blood tribute and because of it my soul turned dark. I eventually killed a man when I was a fourth former and that made me realize that I needed to change. I repented to Nyx, sitting in meditation for three days whilst fasting to allow my spirit to enter the Otherworld. I repented to her there, staying there for another three days. Since I had repented I sought to take over the position of the Dark Daughters, needless to say with the help of our Goddess I was able to do that and spent the past two years of my life making up for everything I've done. I've studied my arse off, staying during the summer to take _more _classes and taking up training to become a Council member. This year I hardly have any classes left to do since I had done them all independently."

"You say you are the leader of the Dark Daughters in London?" Darius asked.

"Not anymore. I dropped the title when I decided I wanted to transfer here."

"To get closer to Thanatos to see if you can claim that open position in the High Council now."

"Exactly."

"But you have touched Darkness." Rephiam commented.

"Yes."

There was a moment of silence before Stevie Rae said "Well that's okie-dokey! Most of us here have been touched by or seen Darkness. You're okay with us."

Liran smiled faintly. "Well, thanks, I suppose."

"You're welcome." Stevie Rae said. "Now we're gonna have to go before the sun rises so… Come on y'all."

The group began to leave, including Erik, leaving Liran all alone in the drama classroom. Liran sighed and sat down in one of the vacant desks and began to sulk.

Outside the drama classroom/_Nisroc_

I stood, hidden in a tree, besides this classroom whose lights were still on (there was a window open partially which I why I could hear). I heard voices but was not too interested in it at first. I soon heard more noises as more people seemed to walk in. I started to become interested and moved closer to the sounds. I could not peer into the classroom but I could hear more clearly.

"Damn it! My grade's low as balls in here!" A male yelled out.

"Quiet!" Shaylin yelled. "Liran's gonna say something."

_Liran…_

The fledgling that talks to me and makes me feel… Normal. I get even closer, the branch under me getting thinner and thinner.

"Thank you Shaylin." Liran said. "Anyways, I did this song back in the UK after a string of incidents that will be explained within the song. If you find that this did not help you one bit, then I will explain it to all of you. So here goes…"

Music began to play and after a moment I could hear her sing. I closed again, captivated once more by the music. When I first heard her sing I did not know what to make out of it. I did not know if I hated it or not. It felt strange, like the sound itself could not decide if it followed the path of Darkness or of Light.

This one sounded Dark. It was not that the song itself, or even the emotion behind it was Dark, it was the memories. Even without seeing the performance I just knew that the musical one was doing I could see the story. I inched closer to the classroom, damning the fact I could not see through the window.

_So I'm down upon my knees _

_Oh lord, I need forgiveness _

_I need forgiveness from you..._

As the last lines were sung out I could only stay there, my eyes closed, as I listened to the ambiance the song had left in the air. After a moment I focused back in on the conversation the vampyres were having inside.

"To get closer to Thanatos to see if you can claim that open position in the High Council now."

"Exactly." Liran answered.

"But you have touched Darkness." My brother said. I know he could feel the same thing I felt, I just knew he did.

"Yes."

After a moment, Rephiam's Red One said "Well that's okie-dokey! Most of us here have been touched by or seen Darkness. You're okay with us."

The fools. They know nothing about Darkness. Even I who is—dare I say it?—_content_ to have a being look at me as if I am one of them I still feel such animosity towards Liran, despite my being _born _from Darkness. She is not to be trusted; she still has so much Darkness behind her…

All went quiet and I had thought that they had all left but there was still light in the room. I inched even closer to the end of the branch. Something was stirring within me, something I never truly felt before. I had begun to—

Suddenly the branch gave way from under me and I fell to the ground loudly and painfully. I had landed on my wings and the pain shot forth through my whole body. "Sssssshit." I cursed, currently hating my position. I had gotten so preoccupied by my current position that I did not hear Liran make her way to the window and open it completely.

"Nisroc?" She called out to me. The next thing I knew she was at my side. She had climbed out the window. "What happened to you?" I watched her look over at the branch that had broken and then look back to me; I could see her think as my eyes met hers. "Were you… Listening in?" I did not answer but I suppose it gave more of an answer than _not _speaking. "You were weren't you? Heh." She then helped me into a sitting position. I thought about whether I should tell her to leave, that I, the second born son of Kalona, did not need any help from her, but the words never came out. "Are you all right?" She asked me, circling around to look at my wings, unfazed.

"Yessssss…"

"Hm…" She gently pressed her fingers into my wings, tentatively at first, as to see if I would allow her to continue. I did. "They feel fine…" She paused completely, her hands resting on my wings. Then her fingers began to glide back and forwards on my feathers. I repressed a shiver. "Your feathers are so soft… Like silk…" We were having a moment, just like before, this one far more intimate. But it all had to be ruined.

"Liran!" Someone called from the classroom. "Liran!"

"Bullocks." She said before she stood and climbed back through the window, not even saying a word to me. I did not know what I felt, but I knew I had to leave. I tested out my wings to see if I could fly and without a moment's notice I flew into the night sky, just before a male vampyre looked out the window.

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><p>The song used was Christina Aguilera's "Mercy on Me".<p>

Next chapter: I really don't know yet. c(;

_**PLEASE REVIEW!**_


	8. Chapter 8

Courtyard, 2nd period/_No POV_

Liran sat on a bench, tiredly moved her finger along the screen of her iPod, watching with a careful eye at the game on the screen. Her finger kept gliding over the screen and the character moved at her command, jumping, sliding and turning as every obstacle came towards her. "Oh! Close one!" Liran remarked as she continued playing Temple Run.

Nisroc watched from afar as the vampire fledgling payed close attention to the device in her hands. He proposed that it was a good way to spend two hours of not having class, playing games, or studying or whatever. But as she continued playing Nisroc moved in closer, his curiosity once again getting the better of him. He knew that he could trust Liran (to some extent) for she hadn't told a soul about his whereabouts.

It had been a week since Liran Sanders had arrived to the Tulsa House of Night and with every passing day she seemed to get closer to Thanatos, just as planned. Another thing the Raven Mocker noticed was that the cowboy and Horse Mistress were getting more comfortable and closer with each other, especially when Liran was around. He figured it was because of the spell she had placed on the two, the spell that almost allowed the tendrils of darkness to take hold of her. She has been a great influence onto the House of Night. Because of her presence there has been a calming throughout the school, almost to the point where the fledglings and even a small number of professors to forget the dark things that happened on campus.

Nisroc reached Liran's side and sat beside her as if it were nothing, as if they had been friends for years. She didn't look up, still tied into her game, but she did acknowledge him. "Hello Nisroc. How are you tonight?"

"Fine." The second favorite son replied. "What'sssss thissss?" He asked, referring to the game in her hands.

"This is an iPod." She replied, misunderstanding him. He knew enough about the modern world to know that the device in her hands was an iPod.

"Not that… _That_." He emphasized, taking a clawed finger and pointing at the screen.

"Oh…" She gasped out. "This is Temple Run, it's a video game." Nisroc tried to get a better glance at the game. "I've been trying to achieve an objective but it's hard." Within moments she died in the game and cursed. "I was working so hard on that… Blast it all…"

"I try…?" Nisroc asked tentatively.

"S-sure…" She responded handing the iPod over to Nisroc. "The controls are simple, down for slide, up for jump and then left and right to turn. Oh and tilt it to move from one side to the other." Liran tapped the 'Run Again' button and the game started over. Nisroc was at a loss as he tried the commands, his claw scratching the screen protector. This caused him to stop, jumping back thinking he scratched the actual device, and die in Temple Run. "That's okay Nisroc. It's just the screen protector that you scratched. Trust me." She added when he gave her a face of disbelief. "Here, try the pad of your finger. It might be a bit difficult for you but…" Her hand went over Nisroc's and she helped him position his finger over the screen, not showing an ounce of fear like she never has.

She started the game over again and this time Nisroc used the pad of his finger. It was a bit more difficult but at least he wasn't dying immediately. Nisroc began to focus intently in the game, getting a feel of the controls. Liran smiled faintly as she watched Nisroc silently. Despite the wings, the beak and the claws, she would have sworn that the Raven Mocker before her was just a regular teenage kid. "You continue playing Nisroc, I need to study anyways." She pulled out her notebook from her bag and began reading over some Spanish words she needed to learn, as well as some grammatical rules.

The two sat there together in a close proximity, each doing their own thing as time went on. Nisroc became increasingly better in Temple Run and Liran was beginning to get bored reading the same words and rules over and over. She sighed and closed her notebook, tired of Spanish for that moment. She put away her notebook and closed up her bag before she turned back to watch Nisroc once more. She inched closer to him, he getting momentarily distracted by her movement thus causing him to die. "Aw man… Sorry if I caused that." Liran said. "I just wanted to see how you were doing."

Nisroc nodded, brushing off the fact that yes, he did mess her up, but he didn't want to hurt her feelings. He stretched out his hand holding the iPod back to her. "Here…"

"No. Keep on playing. You were getting good before I messed you up." Nisroc hesitated but then restarted the game and continued.

Time passed once more and just as Nisroc was about to accomplish the objective Liran was having difficulty with the bell rung for the class change. Liran gasped and Nisroc jumped up to his feet and flew off with the iPod. Liran pulled out a book and laid back on the bench and pretended to be studying. As students and teachers passed through the courtyard, time seemed to move by so slowly but then the minute bell rang and the students quickly dissipated, the teachers following slowly behind, making sure nothing funny goes down during class change. Once the late/start class bell rung Liran sat back up and closed the book. After a few quiet moments Nisroc moved back and joined her side, the screen on the iPod revealing that he had died.

"Goddess that sucked… You almost had it." Nisroc only sighed in response. "You wanna try it again?" She asked him, hopeful that he would. She was fascinated with watching him, he was just such a unique creature, wither he is of darkness or not.

Nisroc shook his head instead and handed back her iPod. "No… I'm done."

"Hm… Yeah… it can get frustrating… and boring too." Liran put her iPod up and slumped against the bench, her second consecutive period of nothing to do beginning.

They sat there together in silence, not knowing what else to do or even what to talk about. Nisroc himself wasn't one for conversation, he preferred silence, so much can be said in silence if you allowed it and that was the type of conversation he enjoyed the most. The one in which no words need to be spoken, just a clear understanding of what the other is thinking or trying to say… He hadn't had that in a long time and it looks like he won't have it anytime soon. Liran on the other hand wasn't much for socializing. She enjoys not having a lot of friends, just a few very close friends is just about necessary. She sighed deeply and unconsciously began playing with the chain of her necklace, and Nisroc noticed this and recognized the necklace as she pulled it out from behind her shirt to play with the medallion.

"Liran, that necklace…" Nisroc started, only poking at the subject matter.

Liran looked down at the necklace and covered it up with one hand. "It's nothing really… Just a-a-a—"

"A token… to help you circlesss."

"Yes." Nisroc nodded and stared at the hand that closed over the medallion. He then decided to drop the subject, no point in prying when it was obvious she didn't want to talk about it. Liran groaned silently, glad that the subject was dropped but the silence was far too thick. "Nisroc… Could you tell me something?"

"Dependsss…"

"It's not that bad it's just… I was just wondering if this humanity you show… I wanna know how-why you show such humanity. Your brother I know the reason why but you, I can't read you as well. You still have a lot of darkness around you and I can't afford to go into that."

"… I don't know…" And he didn't. He didn't know if it is because his father found himself with the Goddess again, sort of, since he became Thanatos' Warrior, or if it's because his father isn't working for the White Bull anymore or what. He didn't know but he was upset to hear that he still had darkness on him, so much so that Liran seemed to want to stay away from. "There'ssss darknessss ssstill?" He asked, wanting to know more.

"Not a lot… Not really anyways it's just… More than I'm comfortable with dealing—but on the bright side, I see that it's slowly diminishing. I think that if you continue on staying here while I cleanse the place you should be right as rain."

"Cleassse?" Nisroc asked, finally looking at her.

She too finally turned her head to look into his red eyes. "Yes. Thanatos entrusted me to clean the school of its darkness. That's why everyone's been more—"

"Happier."

"Yeah, and calmer and stuff…" She sighed and turned away, looking back out into the courtyard. "Its hard work and I fear… I fear that because of the spiritual cleansing of the school that I'm dealing with the darkness more than I would like." She paused and scoffed softly, turning her head once more to look at the Raven Mocker. "I know you can feel the darkness still on me too. I got into some pretty deep stuff back in London… I'm surprised, really that I turned around the way I did."

"It wass because you are sstrong."

The fledgling giggled faintly. "Thank you. I-I don't know. I-I just wish I had my friends here from London. Timothy especially."

"Timothy?"

"Yeah, he as kind of like my Warrior though he didn't pledge himself to me. He wants to but…"

"You don't want him."

"I _do _want him, just as a friend, nothing more." Liran said finally releasing her hands from her necklace and having it rest between her breasts. "I think I would just… feel more comfortable with someone else there, watching over me." Nisroc stared at her, stared into her purple eyes, searching. She chuckled once, breathlessly and turned a faint pink as she turned her face away to try and hide the blush that she really had no idea where it came from. "It's a stupid—"

"I will."

"What?" Liran asked, looking at him once more, her blush deepening.

Nisroc himself was starting to feel hot and his heart was beginning to beat faster. "I protected you last time… I'll do it again, as many times necessary." Nisroc heard his own voice, not a single hiss.

Liran heard it too and that nearly threw her off but luckily she kept her feet firmly on the ground, metaphorically speaking. "I-I don't want to burden you Nisroc. Y-you don't have to—"

"I want to."

"Oh." Liran gasped out, her blush turning from a pink haze to full on red. She turned her body away to hide her face. "I-I suppose that if you _want _to then it would be fine…"

Nisroc suddenly felt giddy with excitement for some unexplainable reason. Her shyness spoke to him, her movements, they said so many things to him and his own body was beginning to respond to her calls. "Liran Sanders, I would gladly protect you."

She gasped, not only from his words but his hand which softly held her left arm. Her skin just erupted into fire where his touch was. Her breath came out in a big gust of air. Something was happening to her and she didn't know what but she was enjoying it. She turned around quickly, her blush gone, her confidence growing. She was definitely enjoying this. "Nisroc…" She breathed out the Raven Mocker's name, her veins coursing, needing, wanting, pulsing for something. Something like—

The bell rung and the moment was gone in an instant. "Nisroc go!" She told him, he stood but remained where he was.

"If you need me, where do I find you?"

"Just… I—"She was beginning to hear the students' chatter as they left their classes. "Find me in my room. I always go there before I start a cleansing, to collect my things. Now go, please!"

Nisroc nodded towards her, the nod almost seeming like a bow before spreading his wings and flying off into the night, and just in time as the students flocked to the courtyard to socialize. A big sigh of relief washed over her, her eyes closed as she calmed her heart. When she opened her eyes she noticed a solitary black feather before her. _It must have fallen from him when he took flight. _She hypothesized as she picked up the soft, black feather. As she held it in her hand and ran a finger up the length of it she couldn't help but smile at the moment the two had shared just moments before.

She chuckled to herself and gathered her bag with her free hand, eyes still on the feather. She stood and placed the bag over her shoulder in one motion, and that's when she moved her gaze from the feather to the area behind the bench. She gasped and dropped the feather. Tendrils were beginning to advance towards the bench and start climbing up the back side of the bench after her. "No…" She whispered, turning quickly and rushing to Drama class to escape the tendrils.

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><p>TELL ME WHAT YOU THOUGHT ABOUT THE INTERACTION BETWEEN LIRAN &amp; NISROC! <em><strong>PLEASE REVIEW!<strong>_ Remember, the more reviews the faster I update!


	9. Chapter 9

Sorry for the wait, got distracted with summer classes and then dealing with the 2 clubs I'm president of at my school so… Yeah… Well anyways we are finally gonna see what Neferet is up to! I've been neglecting her lately! xD

SPOILERS FROM "LENOBIA'S VOW" IF YOU HAVEN'T READ IT _YET_!

* * *

><p><span>Mayo Tower_No POV_

Neferet sighed heavily as she was lay haphazardly across the sofa. She still could not believe that she was out of a job and worse yet the Council had been ignoring her calls. She cursed Thanatos and Zoey and the rest of the group. She was on top of the world, ready to command and take over and in just one night all her hard work and deception collapsed into a heap. She still has yet to locate Aurox that traitor.

Her vessel had run off into the night, seemingly disappearing off the face of the planet and her Consort, the White Bull, had all but seemed unfazed by all these events. Even he, the grand and immortal Bull of Darkness, had abandoned her. She had not seen or even heard from her Consort since that fateful night and all this waiting around for him was beginning to make her antsy and impatient.

She hated the feeling.

She was always one to stand on her own just fine, strong enough, evil enough, to not need anyone else. But ever since she and the White Bull had formed their bond she had weakened at his touch and now was, as she always was, under him, now so than before. She knew that the immortal bull was laughing at her from behind her back, this poor, weak, headstrong vampyre.

Neferet scoffed and gracefully casted her legs off the arm of the sofa and rose gently to a standing position. Well she was tired of that image she had formed in the eyes of her stronger, more powerful Consort. She was ready to change that image, and change it she would, starting from the moment when he decides to heed her calls and appear before her. She admitted even that her calls to him were weak and pathetic but how could she prove herself to the White Bull when he was not here to see her change? But all this waiting for him to reappear was agonizing. She felt as if she could not wait for another instant.

As it turns out, she did not have to wait any much longer.

The air in the room got colder and the white form of the bull formed in her suite, just as strong and powerful and as enticing as Neferet remembers. She had planned to act strong, defiant even, but all that flew out the window the moment her eyes fell upon the ravishing muscular form of the immortal. "Oh my dark master," Neferet began, practically falling to her knees as she walked to him, "how much I have waited to see you, to console with you."

"Quiet, vampyre." The bull said thickly. His own plan was thrown into oblivion on the night where everything fell, but on his side-trek at the House of Night, a new plan formulated, and the adult vampyre before him was beginning to waver out of her usefulness. But he was not about to cast her out now, no, he could yet have some use of her and the powers he had ever so generously lent to her. "I have formulated a new plan to give you what you so desire." He played a ploy with the vampyre, knowing quite well that she would fall for it. His plan has, from the very start, been to benefit him and only him. Why should he, a powerful immortal, seek the companionship of a lowly and week vampyre? Though now, he shall admit, that idea did not seem too bad.

"Oh I just knew that you would be out finding a new means to take control of the Council my Consort." Neferet all but gushed out to the fellow immortal. She could not read past the bull's façade, she too infatuated with the power that coursed in the very _air _around him. She collapsed onto his strong back, hands dragging themselves up and down the course white fur. Shudders ripped through her body as that sensation of his fur passing through her fingers once again became familiar.

The White Bull suppressed a smile upon his features. He was going to give Neferet what she so desired, if only to keep her wrapped around his ever increasing control of her. His tendrils floated out and caressed the female, pleasuring her body the way he knew that she enjoyed the most. The vampyre melted at his touch and as she dropped her guard the White Bull allowed that smile to break through his features.

Yes, all was coming together.

Stables/_Lenobia_

Everything has changed within in the stables, ever since that night I overheard Travis and Liran talk about setting up some jumping exercises for Amiron. It was also the same night both Travis and I heard the sounds of a woman's voice talking as if to someone else.

Since that night the air in the stables has been calm, a little bit too calm. There was hardly any emotion in the air, even when the students were in the stables when there was usually happiness or some sort of emotion along those lines.

Even Travis, who usually tries to command my attention, has been especially quiet. Sure he still tosses that famous cowboy smile of his in my direction and does much more than is required of him, it is still weird. And I have been so calm lately, like a weight was lifted off my shoulders.

I didn't quite know how to classify this, much weirder events have happened at this school, especially in this past year, but I did not know if this was a good thing or a bad thing. It wasn't too potentially harmful, at least at the moment. The horses don't seem to be too affected by the change in atmosphere. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but I felt as if something was going to happen. The atmosphere hasn't changed much since that night but it was beginning to, slowly but surely and becoming something almost… familiar.

I tried to shrug it off but with my worry for the horses, the well being of myself and Travis and of course the students, I just could not stop thinking about it. It was almost too much for me to handle alone. I thought about taking it up with Thanatos but she has too much on her plate to worry about something I did not seem was dangerous. And of course I couldn't worry Zoey with it. Not only was she my student and that would seem inappropriate, but she, like Thanatos, has too much on her plate as it is, and I would surely be a horrible being for causing her grief over something that may not even be anything at all.

Whatever the case may be, I continued to work as if nothing was bothering me. My acting seemed to do the trick as no one else seemed to notice that my behavior was off, if only by a little bit. I instead busied myself with the horses and helping Liran set up her course so that she and Amiron could practice their jumps together. But as I begun to notice, Liran seemed to feel the same thing I felt for she seemed more distant these past few times she has visited the stables and more observant on what Travis and I was doing. It brought questions but I didn't think to ask her what was troubling her.

Stables, later that night/_Travis_

My dreams have always been weird, even since I could remember. But ever since I arrived at the House of Night and met Lenobia, the beautiful vampyre that haunts my every thought, the dreams have gotten even weirder. This one was by far the weirdest.

I was handling two matching gray Percherons in a place that was constantly rocking. Only moments into the dream did I realize I was on a ship. There was also a cat, a fat cat, that I considered as a companion though the cat thought otherwise. In this dream I was not me, I was a tanned skin man, shirtless, with stripped pants, my shoulder length black hair tied back. I looked almost like the prince in _Beauty and the Beast_ at the end when he turned back into a human with his hair tied back but obviously darker. And when I spoke to the horses I sounded French, using words like _cher _and _cherie _though I reckoned that both words meant the same thing.

In this dream I had gone to the back of this holding pen on this ship to go get something, feed, or a brush, I don't know what, but then I heard something from the front and I went back up, forgetting what I was getting. Then I saw Lenobia, but she was dressed in a French period dress and she looked a bit younger, not by much, but still younger. She spotted the horses and gasped softly, a huge smile gracing her face. "Ooooh! Look at the two of you! You're exquisite!" She sounded like Lenobia, but with a thicker French accent.

I faintly recoiled from the dream. It seemed too real to be a dream. It was like… I have been there before, like I've witnessed this before. As I slipped back into the dream it was as if there was no pause button for it moved on to the next scene. "Brave? No, I am frightened of everything!" Lenobia said after some hysterical giggling. The sound sent shivers through my body, in both my dreams and in reality.

"Except horses and cats." I said, my accent throwing me off slightly.

"Yes." The word came out breathlessly and I could tell through the eyes of my dream-self that she was trying _not _to act breathless but obviously failing. "Except horses and cats."

The dream moved forward again and this dream started to feel more and more like a distant memory than an actual dream. This meeting with my dream-self and Lenobia was far more rushed, I could hardly see facial expressions and the conversation ran together. This time it was me who began this scene. "You promised to a great man. That true, _cherie_?"

"It is true. His name is Thinton de Silegne, he is a name with no face—no body—no heart."

"He a name with land, though, _cherie_. I know his name and his land. His plantation, the Houmas, is like paradise." With those words I felt my heart, _my _real, breathing, beating heart, break.

"It is not paradise I want Martin." She said brokenly, my dream-self's name finally revealed in a thick French accent. "Is is only y—"

"No!" I stopped her, placing a finger to her lips. "You cannot speak it, you." My heart was breaking even more with every word that passed between us. "My heart, he is strong, but not strong enough to fight your words." _Then don't fight it! _I yelled out to him, as if I were watching a movie and was yelling at the characters of the film in vain. _Don't fight it! Tell her you love her! _

"I only ask that your heart listen."

"Oh, _cherie_. My heart, he already heard your words. Your heart, she speaks them to me. But that as far as they can go—only this silent talk between us."_NO! _I yelled. _No, don't you even dare! How dare you allow her to slip out of your fingers coward! _

"But… I want more."

_I want more too Lenobia… I want it! _Believe _me I want it so much! _"_Qui, mon petite chou_, I want more too." _Yes! _I celebrated but a bit too early. "But it cannot be. Cecile, we cannot be."

The dream was moving forward again as I wondered why I—I mean Martin—had called Lenobia Cecile. I knew her as Lenobia unless… she went by a different name all those years ago… But wait, this was just a dream. None of this had happened. Had it? "What do I call you?" Martin asked emotionlessly. I was so confused that I just stood by as an invisible third person in the room, watching from the side.

"Lenobia is my name but I like it when you call me _cherie_." She answered and I could feel her discomfort of the strangeness of my dream-self. I could tell that we were still on the ship and still in the stables where all of these scenes took place.

It skipped forward again, my _soul_ telling me that it was just merely a 'discussion' of trust. "Would you have ever told me?" Martin asked.

"Yes." She said without hesitation. "I would have told you my secret when I told you that I loved you."

Martin closed the face before him, his face turning from near anger to something else, something I couldn't quite tell. "No, _cherie_. You cannot love me." I wanted to punch him in the face.

"Cannot? I already do."

My heart practically exploded from love. She loved me—loved Martin. I felt my body in the real world shiver, it was as if it were telling me that Martin was in fact _me_. And for some reason, I was beginning to believe it. Stranger things have happened.

Then fire erupted in my dream. I felt my, _my_, skin burning, and in my arms, a soft and frightened presence. I opened my eyes—Martin's eyes—and saw Lenobia in my arms, fire consuming us both, fire attacking her hair, burning it slightly. I reacted the only way I knew how and lifted her into my arms, leading us away from the flames. My body felt severely burned, I had shielded her from the flames, saved her life, and I had accidently dropped here when I got her away from the flames safely. When I looked down at her, our eyes meeting, tears threatened to fall. "Oh, no! Martin! No!"

"Too late, _cherie_. This world too late for us." I realized that we were no longer on the ship but in an old town with cobblestone streets. "I see you again, though. My love for you don' end here. My love for you, it never end." In the background I heard a voice, threatening my life. "I don' stay here now, though I wish I could. I don' lose you, either. I find you again, _cherie_. That I vow."

"Please, Martin. I don't want to live without you." She sobbed and my heart just finished breaking and I started to cry in reality, though my dream-self, my old self, stayed strong and true.

"You must. I find you again, _cherie_. Before I go, this one thing I can fix this time, though. _A bientôt cher. _I will love you always."

As fire enveloped my dream again I heard faintly the sounds of my own voice, both that of Martin's and my own, reciting a spell of sorts. I couldn't listen to it, the fire was to strong and yet I knew it.

"_Martin!_"

The agonized scream of Lenobia in my dream woke me with a start. Beside me my horse looked down on me with worried eyes. I looked at her dappled gray form, much like the Percherons from the ship. Then I remembered what Lenobia said when she first encountered Bonnie.

"_I have not seen a Percheron since my voyage… I've remembered them fondly and since have been intrigued by draft horses… I've remembered them fondly…" _

I sobbed, tears unloading from my eyes. She remembered them fondly because they introduced us… Martin and Cecile... But now Travis and Lenobia…

Bonnie muzzled her nose into my shoulder and she nickered softly. I chuckled softly to myself at the irony of my life and hugged the large nose of my Bonnie, my special girl. Tears continued to fall from my eyes but I made no move to brush them off. No wonder I was so attracted to Percherons, this place… to Lenobia… To _mon cherie._ I chuckled again and more tears fell, this time of happiness.

"I kept my vow Lenobia." I said suddenly. "I've kept it…" I looked up to where her chambers were, staring at my ceiling, her floor, wishing that I was there and being with her once more. "I found you again."

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><p>So this was kinda a filler chapter really. But what'd you think? Pretty awesome right? I think this chapter is my favorite so far, I just LOVE it! Next chapter: I have no idea yet; have a few ideas, not sure how to work it. <em><strong>PLEASE REVIEW! THE MORE REVIEWS THE FASTER I UPDATE!<strong>_


	10. Chapter 10

Just as an announcement to help the flow of this story, chapter 9 was mostly a filler that happened as school just finished and everyone was packing it up and all. This chapter starts off where chapter 9 left off in time but is back on track with the regular storyline. I probably made it sound confusing but it really isn't. I promise.

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><p><span>Liran's room_Liran_

I collected all my things for the cleansing ritual; sage, cedar, sweetgrass, a new ritual purple candle since I burned the last one to a useless stump, four smaller purple candles, special wood matches for ritual use and of course my pendant. I lifted the necklace from behind my shirt and inspected it softly. It wasn't a new pendant, I've had it since I became a fledgling, but it's retained some of its gloss even though I constantly wear it. My thumb passed over the amethyst gem in the center and felt myself relax further just at the motion. I've used this necklace so many times that the necklace itself retains some of my element in it. I sighed and looked at the clock in my room and it flashed out four AM, late for doing rituals in my standards, usually once class lets out and all others had gone to their rooms I would have begun the ritual, but I was waiting for Nisroc.

As I waited for him I thought about the Raven Mocker. I had read about Raven Mockers, hell, I read about all other mystical beings that I could scavenge up information on, especially on those that we knew existed because of records. Coming here to the Tulsa House of Night I just hoped to run into a Raven Mocker, to see them in real life, but when I got here I heard that Kalona, their father and leader, had switched to the Light side of the force and that Raven Mockers had all but disappeared off the face of the planet.

All except Rephiam who had taken on the form of a human at night and a literal bird at day and his brother Nisroc, who still remained on campus unbeknownst to almost everyone. I suspected that Rephiam would know and of course Kalona knew which meant that there was a possibility that Thanatos knew as well. I did doubt that Zoey and her friends knew though, except maybe Stevie Rae who is Rephiam's Consort. Whatever the case may be, Nisroc was no ordinary Raven Mocker. I'm not one to say though since I didn't know Rephiam from before but I had heard from other students is that he wasn't the nicest Raven Mocker ever and that he killed the late professor Anastasia, the late Sword Master's mate.

It was obvious that Nisroc was ranked highly amongst his brothers, he had so much humanity in him and it doesn't take an idiot to realize that the more rank (or age in this case since rank is based off age in the Raven Mockers' society/family) one has the more humanity they have. From his spirit, I could tell that he had to be one of the first born Raven Mockers behind Rephiam, though what number he is was unknown to me. Perhaps I'll ask him later…

At that thought I heard a rasping at my window and scurried over there to see a pair of red eyes looking into the window. I smiled faintly, my mind flashing a scene of Romeo and Juliet for some strange apparent reason, before I opened the window, my smile falling, as I began scolding the Raven Mocker for being late. "You are late Nisroc! I would have already finished the ritual by now if I hadn't had to wait for you!"

"My apologiessssss…" He hissed out and inside I felt sad since earlier he had said a sentence without so much of a hiss in it.

I sighed and shrugged my shoulders, my anger, wither it was a façade or real, slipping out of my system. "I forgive you… Wait for me right outside the dorm, I'll be right there." He nodded his head and slipped off the small amount of roof there was outside my window. I should have just told him to wait for me where I had to do the ritual but I just couldn't process that in my mind in time.

I gathered my things and rushed quickly out of the dorms and met with Nisroc who was standing by a stone bench. We walked together in silence, my necklace dangling from my neck and hitting me repeatedly in my chest as I walked, distracting me slightly as I ran through the steps of the cleansing ritual again. I knew the ritual by heart but it was just customary for me to think about it before hand.

"Thissss ritual… Not the sssame asss othersss…" Nisroc hissed out suddenly, disrupting the silence, as I felt a jolt of worry since he usually doesn't hiss-talk this badly.

"No it isn't." I answered the statement-question. "I modified it a lot to fit me so…"

It was around this time were silence came back and Nisroc slowed drastically as I continued my track to the ritual's location tonight. "Liran—"He said my name brokenly. He needn't say anything else for we arrived at the broken spot in the wall and the tree that was split down in many areas.

There was so much darkness here… This is where Kalona and his sons were released by Neferet, this I knew, and this is why I was saving this area for last. Though I would have to continuously do the cleansing ritual in certain areas depending on how bad they were, this one was extremely horrendous. I had noticed throughout the school hours that no one, and I do mean _no one_, would come near this area, as if there was a giant fence around it saying 'Keep Out Or Else!'. I sighed and thanked Nyx that someone was here with me for this one, but damning my concern for others, I turned to Nisroc. "Do you still want to stay? If this is too much for you… I can manage by myself."

He turned his head down to look at me, his eyes wide, shocked anger showing in his eyes. "Are you inssssane?" He hissed out at me. "Leave you here—in thissss placce?" He shook his head at me before looking back at the area. He didn't say another word after that.

I sighed again, this time from joy for I truly wouldn't be doing this alone. "Okay…" I whispered softly as I mentally and physically prepared myself for this night. We walked together to the area, Nisroc getting closer to me as we closed in on the tree where I planned to make the circle because it was the area that had the most darkness.

But then, it being the most darkness meant it was the most dangerous. At this point Nisroc placed one clawed hand on my arm, as if the contact between us would protect me more, which was probably true. I knelt to the ground, watching my surroundings with weary eyes for any tendrils of Darkness that might come out from the shadows. I set up my circle like I always have, using the secondary directions, holding the main candle in my hands and setting up the herbs before me in order of use, sage, cedar and finally sweetgrass. Nisroc's hand was still on my arm and with a knowing reluctance he released my arm and backed away from the circle but still stayed close enough just in case something should occur.

I did calming breaths before I begun, sticking one of the matches and lighting all the candles first, the smaller ones first before the one I held in my hands. I mentally sent a prayer to Nyx, asking her to keep Nisroc and I safe during this ritual since I had an increasingly bad feeling the longer we stayed there. I could see faintly from my peripheral vision that Nisroc too was getting nervous as he shifted weight from one foot to the other and then back again.

My grip on the candle in my hands tightened and I faced the tree and the wall in such I way that I had them both in my sights and was still looking in one of the secondary directions; northeast. I shrugged softly to myself. In Native American culture north represented wisdom and thought while east represented salvation and spirit; so far it seemed like all would go according to plan. I shifted to a crisscross position in the middle of my circle before I truly begun the ritual, beginning in the same way I start off every ritual.

"I call upon the power of Spirit; that of my spirit, that of the earth's and wind's spirit, that of fire's and water's spirit." Once again I could feel the _essence _of the four other elements present while my element wrapped them all together around me, momentarily tying them to my own spirit. _Here we go…_ I sighed mentally before reciting, grabbing the sage and burning it with the flame from the main candle.

_By Nyx's word I command earth to relax this ground,_

_I command air to calm this ground, _

_I command fire to burn the evil of this ground,_

_I command water to heal this ground,_

_I command spirit to protect this ground,_

_Only good may enter here,_

_Only good can stay here;_

_Evil shall have no reign here!_

_By Nyx's word I command you!_

As I recited the spell the elements did what they were told; I felt the ground soften below me, I felt the wind stir softly, I felt heat coursing through the earth and a liquid presence washing over me. Spirit did the most though as it surrounded the area, encasing Nisroc and me in this location, trapping us. I was already trapped due to my circle but now I was doubly trapped as Nisroc only had one barrier. The smoke from the sage was picked up by the wind when I called it and now sage wafted in the area that spirit so blatantly blocked off for us.

I released a breath and blew out the sage, shaking it back and forward to get as much as the smoke to be released into the air. Next came the cedar and I glanced at Nisroc before I began. Our eyes locked and he nodded slightly, nothing had happened yet that has put me in any danger and I cockily let my guard drop slightly, feeling truly safe with Nisroc watching over mer. I placed the cedar in the flame of my candle and since the spell I chanted before was still in play, wind picked up the cedar and begun to replace the sage. I then had begun to recite the next spell.

_By Nyx's grace I see to bless this ground,_

_Earth, bless this ground,_

_Air, bless this ground,_

_Fire, bless this ground,_

_Water, bless this ground,_

_Spirit, bless this ground;_

_From where I am I see to embrace this ground,_

_By Nyx's grace may joy and peace embrace it as well._

The moment I finished the spell Darkness rippled before me from behind the trees, using the shadows to conceal itself but I could see; I could see the tendrils quack in anger for being disrupted by the joy and peace that this particular spell brought in. Nisroc was before me in a second, kneeling onto the ground to act as an unmovable force between me and the Darkness… It only shivered in pleasure.

That thought made _me _shiver. The fact that I can _still_ tell what emotions Darkness conveys towards situations made me fear this ritual. Sure I had faced these tendrils in other rituals, but never like this, not now as it moved forward from out of the shadows, moving slowly as if it was wounded, as it should be. Nisroc hissed loudly and the tendrils coiled before coming to a stop just a few feet before him. "_Liran—"_Nisroc hissed out. "_Finisssh it!_"

I nodded, though I knew he could not see me, and snuffed out the cedar before moving quickly into the next spell. I had known that I would have to do this particular area countless times before it really made an impact, but with the tendrils reacting as they are, I realized that I might have to come back to this area much sooner than I would like to admit. I lighted the sweetgrass quickly and as wind once again picked up the herb and started to circulate it around, I saw the tendril recoil back, sweetgrass having the biggest effect on Darkness. Nisroc hissed at it in warning just as I began to recite the last spell.

_By Nyx's blessing I evoke this ground,_

_I evoke earth and air, _

_I evoke fire and water,_

_I evoke spirit;_

_Come as one, be as one;_

_From the divine power of the Goddess,_

_Protect and bless this ground through time!_

I heard a screeching sound and realized within moments that it came from the Darkness. I was frozen in my spot as I watched with horror and the tendrils erupted forward and attacked Nisroc, slicing him all over his body, scarlet blood dripping onto the ground. When the blood hit I felt pain shoot up through me as first spell practically collapsed at the unwanted substance. I blew out the sweetgrass and decided to steer away from the ritual and focus on protecting the last two spells and Nisroc, quickly creating a spell on the fly.

_Through the Goddess Nyx I command you!_

_Release Nisroc, release this ground!_

_I command you!_

_I use Her blessing,_

_I use my Spirit,_

_I command you!_

"No Liran!" Nisroc yelled at me as the tendrils broke into two, one still wrapping around the Raven Mocker and one charging towards me—to reclaim me once more.

"_No!_" I yelled in defiance and my pendant burned, the heat going through my clothing as my element was thrown up around me, creating a shield around me and my circle. Tendrils repeatedly hit the shield, spirit rippling as Darkness hit it.

"Liran!" Nisroc yelled again as he extended out his wings and began to command the tendrils again, just like the first time he saved me from a circle ritual gone awry. "I command you to release her—by my father's power I command you!" The tendrils just continued their attack on the both of us. I could see Nisroc move in confusion, his red eyes glowing.

I cursed mentally. Kalona wasn't with the Darkness anymore. He had chosen Light, Nyx (to some extent, I don't believe he truly has re-accepted her again). Whatever happened the first time was most likely a fluke or something. I shook my head, seeing no way out. "Nisroc just go!" He looked at me, his eyes showing that same anger he showed earlier when I asked him if he wanted to leave. "The first spell is broken—you can leave!"

He glared, _glared_, at me. "Stop." He said without a hiss. "Stop that!" I closed my eyes and felt my body weakening and along with that my spirit. The tendrils hit my shield and I could feel it as it broke through, the atmosphere in my circle being compromised. "_Liran!_" Nisroc yelled as the tendril wrapped itself around my arm and started to crawl up to my torso, cutting me as it went up, lapping at my blood.

I whimpered, the feeling of the tendrils a dark reminder of my past, a past I no longer wanted an association to, a past that was starting to re-claim me. The candles around me and in my hand started to flicker in warning, not of the circle being improperly broken, but towards the Darkness for my spirit was still fighting back, no matter how weak it had become.

I could faintly hear Nisroc call out to me as the tendrils began to snake down my legs, cuts appearing all over my body. "Nyx…" I called out pathetically knowing that it would have to take some sort of miracle to get me—and Nisroc—out of this shitty situation.

Instead I was surprised when a large black blur—Kalona—appeared beside his son and cut at the tendrils with a sword that was glowing white—a blessed sword—right where they were still as one. The tendrils released the both of us and retreated back into the shadows and I nearly collapsed back but was still conscious enough to notice Nisroc reach to me only to be stopped by the Sword Master. Kalona looked at me then, amber eyes appearing to burn with adrenaline. "Break the circle _now!_"

I gasped for air and quickly broke the circle with a strained "Spirit… I release you…"

The moment I said that everything quieted; the candles went out, the circle broken, everything just stilled and I finally collapsed backwards onto my back, my legs tangled up. I faintly could see that the candle in my hand was turned to the side and still hot wax was beginning to fall down the sides towards my hand. I had expected the liquid to burn me but it never had the chance as Nisroc pulled the candle out of my hands and grasped me in his claws, pulling me so that I rested against him, my head resting on top of his legs since his legs were tucked under him. I groaned, my body in distress, as Nisroc moved one hand to meet with one of my own.

Kalona knelt beside the both of us, the sword in his hand losing its brightness as it was put away. Kalona looked down onto me, his eyes scanning my body before nodding his head and saying "She will be fine. She just needs something to eat." I understood the moment he said that statement that it was blood I needed. I wanted to sigh but my body was literally too tired to even sigh.

Nisroc's hand tightened and I could hear him whisper to his father. "Her eyes are still glowing father…"

My stomach twisted in worry—who the bloody hell am I trying to kid?—fear. "She was attacked by Darkness, much like the Red One was when she called the White Bull by mistake." I blinked slowly… The White Bull… "I need to report to Thanatos." Kalona said slowly as he thought about whatever he was thinking about. My eyes started to close and Nisroc released pressure before tightening his grip again—he's trying to keep me awake. "Nisroc, go to Thanatos, tell her all that has happened. I will take Liran to the infirmary." '_Where they will give her blood to heal' _went the unspoken fact.

Nisroc hesitated. I don't know if it was for finding out that Thanatos did in fact know that he was here or if he didn't want to leave my side. Whatever the case is he bowed his head to his father and gently handed me to his father before flying in the direction of Thanatos' quarters. Kalona lifted me into his arms and began to quickly move to the nurse's office. My body shook with tremors and my mind slipped further into unconsciousness as I passed out in the Fallen Immortal's arms.

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><p>So what'd you think about <em>that<em>? Some crazy stuff right? Well anyways please review, reviews make me happy. Right now I'm gonna go eat because I'm hungry but when I come back to my computer I expect to see some email notifications about reviews! I'm warning ya!

_**PLEASE REVIEW!**_

Next chapter: The ritual last night wasn't a total failure. Liran visits the site again, this time with Zoey and the gang, and this time she demands to know everything about our favorite group of friends.


	11. Chapter 11

West Wall/_No POV_

Liran tapped her foot impatiently as she stared—more like glared—at the tree where her cleansing ritual went completely wrong—more like horrible. She huffed out a breath of air as anger boiled inside her. She and Nisroc could have died last night; worse, she could have reverted back to her old self and the Raven Mocker would have died as well. She ran her hands over her arms where scars were left from where the tendrils were literally ravishing her, drinking up her blood like it was a tangy alcoholic beverage. The blood she received last night from the nurse was imitation blood and it didn't do jack shit. Sure it stopped the bleeding and the skin healed up, but if it were real human blood, the spirit fledgling wouldn't even have scars on her otherwise perfect body.

Finally the gang of fledglings and adult vampyres showed up. It was lunch time so all of them could be in one place at once. The problem was that since it was lunch time that meant that other vampyres—fledglings or adult—were wandering around as well. "There you guys are? Do you think you could have moved any slower?" Liran said through clenched teeth, her attitude influenced by the events of last night.

"Sorry Liran." Shaylin spoke softly, surprised by the other's sour tone.

"Hey, crude bitch." Aphrodite cursed out, not at all liking the attitude coming from Liran's mouth. "Cool the 'tude and maybe you won't get punched in the face."

"Why don't you shut your trap Aphrodite?" Liran snapped. "I almost died last night trying to make this place safe for everyone—best show some respect."

"And it's not like we don't respect it Liran." Damien said quickly before Aphrodite could say something. "It's just that… well… the attitude is a bit much don't you think?"

"Shite no." Liran answered as she stared hardly at the gang before her. Before they could speak she continued. "I want to know everything."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Aphrodite asked.

Liran sighed, her patience not at all at its greatest. "_Everything_. Starting from when Kalona was released with his sons in this spot up to the events before my arrival here." She glanced at Stevie Rae and Rephiam. "And you two—I want to know about the White Bull. I tried to ask your father last night Rephiam but he wouldn't even speak to me then." _Seeing as I endangered his son as well as my life and even his. _Liran said in her mind.

It was Zoey's turn to speak now as she talked calmly with Liran. Somehow she knew that something had shaken Liran to the core, but what it was exactly Zoey couldn't guess. She could feel that this area was a _bit_ calmer but there were hints of some Darkness under it all. Zoey wanted to ask what happened last night during Liran's ritual but opted to wait until later. "That's a lot to talk about Liran. It would take a while."

"I've got all lunch period."

"But most of us don't." Shaunee said faintly. "I need to eat, I'm starving."

Erin sighed and nodded. "I agree with Tw—I mean Shaunee. You don't need _all _of us to tell you the story."

Stark nodded. "All you really need is Zoey, Stevie Rae, Rephiam and myself really. The others would be nice to have their own inputs in the story but they're not really needed—no offense guys."

"None taken." Shaylin said with a grin. "Besides, I'm sure that Aphrodite would rather be eating with Darius right now and then sucking his face later." The girl giggled as the blessed human growled.

"Fine." Liran said through clenched teeth. "Just—"She sighed, realizing that perhaps it was best to at least _try _to dial down some of her attitude. "—just please… please juts fill me in."

By the time lunch was coming to an end, Zoey, Stevie Rae, Rephiam and Stark had remarkably gotten really far within their story and adventure, ending at the moment just before Stevie Rae did call upon the White Bull on accident. Liran was quiet throughout the whole story-telling; taking in the information and not asking too many questions both mentally and vocally so she could catch everything and put it all in her mental timeline of events at the Tulsa House of Nights. The bell rung and Liran sighed for she was truly more interested in the White Bull than anything else. "Thanks guys for filling me in most of the way. Finish tomorrow?" Liran said as she glanced up at the vampyres and ex-Raven Mocker who were standing to head to their next class.

"Sure Liran." Zoey nodded her head at the other fledgling. "See you around."

"See you Liran." Stark said as he and Zoey began to walk away.

Rephiam placed his hands on the table and leaned in and whispered to Liran "Ask Nisroc about the White Bull. I told him about Stevie Rae and I and everything we went through—he could tell you what you want to know."

Liran glanced down at the table and felt a twang of sadness hit her. She hasn't seen Nisroc since last night. Usually he would have come and visited her while she had no classes and hung out with her, but not today and she doubts that she would see him tonight. "Sure Rephiam. Thanks."

The ex-Raven Mocker nodded. "If anything Stevie Rae and I can tell you the story tomorrow." He added as if he had read her thoughts. He left with Stevie Rae after the country red vampyre said 'goodbye'.

Liran was left to brood as she bit into an apple, her only lunch, and began crossing the school yard to get to her next class, Spanish 101. Liran felt all out of touch from last night. She usually walked down the hall with an air of confidence and as she can admittedly say with a smug way about her but the events from last night rocked her to her core. When she had finally returned to her room and glanced in her mirror she saw the bright purple glow of her eyes fade away, a whole forty-five minutes after Kalona had saved them and he brought her to the infirmary.

Eyes glowing are not a good sign—especially for her.

When she was still walking hand-in-hand with the Darkness her eyes would have always been glowing, even when she was at rest. When she wasn't at rest and was performing some ritual or using her spirit for whatever reason, her eyes would have glowed so brightly that you wouldn't have been able to see the whites of her eyes. When she finally made the switch and once again began following Nyx's word the thought of her eyes glowing like that once more scared her more than anything in the world. Eyes glowing meant strength and power, but to her, it also meant Darkness.

And lately Darkness has been extremely restless.

Sure when she arrived at the school Darkness was always on the move in the shadows and around some students and even a professor or two, but since Liran started the cleansing rituals the Darkness began to rest and hide away. Now, because of the screw-up of the century, it was everywhere, mocking her.

The bell rung and Liran noticed that she was nowhere near Spanish 101. She was in the fields behind the stables and she had stopped to look at the small orchid of trees that stood to the back of the fields. Liran felt her spirit being pulled there and at the other end Darkness. But it wasn't like _pure _Darkness like the tendrils, it was something else. Liran finished off her apple, placing the core where her water bottle was outside of her bookbag (she wasn't about to litter even if an apple core is decomposable) before she continued walking to the orchid—might as well, she was already late.

Liran walked in through the trees and heard something shuffling in the darkness. Liran sighed and sat down on the ground, leaning against a tree for support. "I'm not going to hurt you." Liran stated softly as she started ahead at another tree. "It's obvious to me that you have some lingering Darkness on you—I can practically smell it on you. But then you can tell that I have some of it myself so we're all peachy here."

Whoever it was shuffled again, a twig snapping under its weight before it seemingly froze at the sound. Liran just sat there, not moving, not saying a word, as she waited to gain some of this being's trust. Eventually, halfway through fifth period (her professor was going to _kill _her but Liran has straight A's so doubts it would be _that _bad if she missed a day) the being came out and sat beside her. Liran turned her head and came face-to-face with a surprisingly good looking man—even though he looked as if he was running amuck in the woods for days. He turned to look at her when he felt her eyes on him, his facial expression sad and confused. Liran smiled faintly and extended a hand. "Hi, my name's Liran Sanders."

He looked at her extended hand and then back at her face before he too extended a hand and grasped hers in his. "I'm Aurox."

* * *

><p>Cliffhanger! Haha. Aurox came back! Yay! So anyways sorry if the chapter's short—I was going to continue it but then I thought a cliffhanger would be nice. Mwu-haha! (That's my evil laugh.) <em><strong>PLEASE REVIEW!<strong>_

Next chapter: Liran skipped a class and met Aurox, now we find out what happened to him after he ran away and hid from both Zoey and Neferet.


	12. Chapter 12

Aurox and Liran/_No POV_

"Aurox, huh?" Liran sounded as the two shook hands and then released their hold. "Cool name."

Aurox looked confused, as if he didn't know how to respond to that. After a while he said "And you said your name is Li-ran?"

"Bugger me!" Liran growled out as the boy mispronounced her name, a serious pet peeve of hers. She's always had a problem with her name, that's why she changed it in the first place. And since then she's developed a new problem with her name. At first she used to just shrug it off but then she just snapped one day. "It's pronounced Li-rhan, but yes, that is my name." Aurox just raised a brow at her. "What?" Liran asked as she looked quizzically at the other.

"You should really keep control over your anger." He nudged his head just behind her and she turned to see tendrils wrapping around a tree near her.

"Bugger me!" Liran repeated as she got up and moved to sit on Aurox's other side, using the boy as a shield.

Said half-bull man chuckled softly, realizing the fledgling's intention. "I won't serve much as a shield fledgling. I was born from Darkness. I hardly doubt it would even see me at all."

"Born from it? Like the Raven Mockers?" Liran blurted out.

"No." Aurox answered simply. He realized that he was talking too much, saying too much. He had left Neferet's side but still it did not mean that he could just—as humans put it—spilled his guts out to this fledgling who obviously had her own Darkness to worry about.

"No." She repeated his answer, still very much interested in Aurox. "Do you care to elaborate some more?"

"No."

"No he says…" Liran sighs out. She leaned heavily on the tree she was sharing with this boy and crossed her arms over her chest. After a moment a silence Liran half turned towards him. "Well, care to explain then, why you look so disheveled?"

Aurox turned his gaze upon her, since he was staring at the tendrils carefully, and raised one brow. "Why are you so interested?"

Liran blinked. Why was she so interested? She shrugged and sighed before giving another smaller shrug. "I _really _have no idea. If I had to say _something_ I would suppose that it's because you and I are alike. You know, we both have our own Darkness-es and though I may not have born in Darkness like you were, I was raised by it so to speak."

Aurox nodded his head and decided to peak the girl's curiosity and interest. "If you must know, I went against the wishes of my master. I did not what she commanded me to do and instead was force to do commit another act, far beyond my control." He paused and then just damned it all. "I killed the late Swords Master while trying to kill another. Then when I was told to kill Zoey Redbird I-I… I could not. So I ran instead and turned my back to her… and him." Aurox's gaze shifted to the tendrils which seemed to watch the interaction between the two beings with great interest.

"Okay… who are 'her' and 'him' if you don't mind me asking?" Liran pressed, her curiosity going far over the mountain's peak as her old spells and rituals professor back in London would say.

The half-bull man sighed. Well he _did _damn it all. "Neferet and the… the White Bull."

"The White Bull?" Liran asked and from the corner of her eye she saw the tendrils shiver. She turned her gaze onto it, leaning forward to see around Aurox. Yep, it was definitely shivering and _wanting_ to move forward but kept in place. "So… let me get this straight. Neferet is your…"

"Master…"

"Ex-master." Liran corrected.

"…Yes…"

"And the White Bull?" Once again the tendrils shivered and Liran's heart began pounding in her chest.

"He… It was his power that created me… for her. For his Consort."

"Well shite!" Liran cursed. This whole Tulsa House of Night drama was crazy as _hell_. Hell, even hell wasn't as crazy as this. "So you were born directly from him right?"

"In a way. I am a vessel to my understanding. Created only to serve my master but instead I…" Aurox faded out, not knowing how to describe it.

"You have free will, your own thoughts and matter of thinking." Liran supplied.

"Yes." Aurox sounded a bit excitedly as to have someone not only to talk to but someone who seemed to understand him. "I didn't want to kill her—Zoey I mean—and I turned away from her before I could and I ran—ran as far away as possibly to get away—to keep her safe!"

"And yet, here you are, on school grounds." Aurox remained quiet and looked forward, partially ashamed of himself for coming back—correction, being _drawn _back—and putting Zoey in danger once again. He sighed and Liran looked on him, her mind working a hundred miles an hour to piece together this boy's story. An idea came to her and she breathed and opened her mouth, as if to say something when she cut herself off. How was she to explain her idea to him and she also—not to sound crude and all—wanted something in return if she were to help him. She threw it all to the wind and turned her body completely to face him, to address the seriousness of her following words. "Aurox, I can help you. I can use my element of spirit to see what is truly inside you, see if-if there's something… _between _you and Zoey."

Aurox looked at her, his face showing his willingness to do this, to figure out the truth about him and Zoey. Since he arrived on the grounds and met Zoey he had felt drawn to her and he had felt as if he had already met—no, as if he already _knew _her—when he knew that he had never once met her before in his life. _At least… not as Aurox._ A voice in his mind poisoned his thoughts. "Yes." He heard himself say. "Yes, please, if… if there's something you can do to help, then please, _please _help me." It felt weird, weird to _beg _for this fledgling's assistance.

"I'll be happy to help you Aurox but…"

"But?" Aurox asked as he moved closer to the fledgling. In his mind he knew that whatever she would ask for he would do—the not knowing was _killing _him and he would do anything for the knowledge that will put his soul to rest… hopefully.

"I'll need something in return." Aurox nodded his head slowly, still cautious about her terms. "I just… I just want to know more about the White Bull—"once again the tendrils shivered and this time they did move forward, momentarily snapping Liran from her thoughts, "—and the power he has. I _need _to understand it." She finished as she snapped her eyes back to Aurox.

The boy was also distracted by the tendrils and he moved his head back to look at the fledgling. "I will offer you all the information you seek… but you must help me first."

"How can I trust you if you were born from Darkness?"

"How can I trust you if you were raised in it?" Aurox countered before he glanced back at the tendrils who were curling in amongst itself. "And apparently is _still _raised in it."

Liran sighed, the sound bringing Aurox's attention back to her. "Fine. Yes, I see your point." She paused as she gathered her thoughts before extending her hand out once more. "Let's say, for the time being, we will put full trust into each other. I will help you to understand and then you will help me in return. Deal?"

Aurox stared at the hand and then looked at the fledgling before him. A smile spread across his lips before his hand once again grasped hers. "Deal."

The White Bull's Realm_/No POV_

Shivers rocked through the White Bull's body, groans rumbling in the throat of the powerful and immortal creature. Through his eyes he saw what his tendrils were seeing—Aurox, that sorry excuse for a vessel and the fledgling with large spiritual powers conversing in the woods.

_Liran Sanders._

The name sounded, echoing in his dark world, always shrouded in shadows, always empty and barren save for himself and his many tendrils of Darkness and power. His tendrils moved to him, whimpering at his desire, wrapping around his body with tender touches, loving their master.

_Liran Sanders._

"Yes…" He groaned, chuckling darkly to himself, the sound echoing behind her name as if drifted away into nothingness. "She would make a worthy ally."

He looked back at the two, his gaze intently on the fledgling as she stood and continued to speak to Aurox, her words faded to him, indiscrete, not even there. She turned and began walking to the grounds, being careful as to walk around the tendrils that followed her movements like a hawk watched its prey.

"So… she wants to know me?" The White Bull questioned to no one as her form disappeared over the hills of the school's field. "Then I will make my presence known to her." He began to chuckle to himself, his plan inside his dark mind boiling over, his anticipation shaking his body to its core.

"_Liran Sanders."_

Liran/_Liran_

So I got in trouble for missing Spanish class. The moment I walked into the barn—admiringly before the bell even rang for fifth period to be released—Lenobia sent me to Thanatos' office. But not before I noticed urban cowboy in the distance, watching Lenobia closely with a new sense of understanding and light. I smiled as I turned my back to Lenobia and proceeded down to Thanatos' office. It would seem that my little spell on the two had done its job and I, as always, was quite proud of my meddling. I might have single handedly brought these two separated souls together once more, kudos for me. Though it did seem that they weren't _together _just yet but I set the whole thing in motion.

At the High Priestess' office I sat in a chair before her as she couldn't stress enough the importance of not missing another class—classic principle stuff. But then she moved into the under-the-table business with me. "Liran, how is the cleansing rituals going?"

I tensed with the subject but continued on calmly. "Quite well on a whole. That one area at the west wall on the other hand…"

"Yes, the area where Kalona was released…" Thanatos said with a faraway look.

I knew I shouldn't have done what I did next, seeing as not only she is my High Priestess but also a member of the Council, but I smiled and opened my mouth with absolutely no speech filter. "By the Goddess, Thanatos… you have a thing for him."

She glanced at me, her eyes dark with warning. I clamped my mouth shut, sucking on my lips to prevent another outburst. She straightened in her chair and ignored my outburst—thank the Goddess. "I knew that that specific area would have been problematic."

"As did I." I said my speech filter on high. "That is why I saved it for last and I knew for a fact that I would have had to continuously do the rituals."

"You are not considering going back to that area? After what happened last night?"

"I have to." I said instantly, without a pause, without a single thought. "If I do not fully cleanse that area then the school will never be truly safe. That area, if it were to be left alone, would—mind the language—damn this place to hell. It is a powerful and dark area; it will soil all the others."

Thanatos sighed heavily and nodded reluctantly. "I just wish for the safety of my students to be the utmost importance Liran." I nodded, understanding where the Mistress of Death was coming from. "And I am glad that you had Nisroc there to protect you. It was very smart of you."

I flinched at his name, a movement I knew she noticed, before I spoke. "W-why? Because he has experience in Darkness? Because I do as—"

"No, Liran." She interrupted me, her eyes soft and concerned as they looked at me. "It is because I know that he feels useless here. All of his other brother ran and are in hiding while he and Rephiam remain here. He looks up to his brother and reveres him and he sees that Rephiam has his own usefulness with Zoey and the others and he… he has—"

"No one." I interrupted her, my gaze moving to the woods grain on her desk.

"Yes, well, he has his father but Kalona is busy with being a professor and my Warrior…" I felt another outburst but I once again clamped my mouth shut. She sighed again and nodded her head at me. "You may leave to go to class Liran."

"Thank you Thanatos." I said as a goodbye before I turned and left her office.

When I returned to the stables it was already ten minutes inside the class period and so I just decided to take Amiron out for a quick ride, just as to stretch out his legs, instead of doing some jumps. It felt good to ride him again, it's been a little bit too long since I didn't ride him last night… was too busy with helping Travis clean out some stalls since the poor man looked practically horrid last night. It was probably the spell starting to take effect on his human body. I doubt Lenobia would even notice it, but to a human, it is like a strong weight upon your shoulders.

I was just taking a quick turn around the field when my body tensed up. I looked towards the barn on instinct and saw smoke rise up from the building. Without a second thought I kicked Amiron and he reared, neighing loudly in a cavalry call, as he rushed out and towards the barn. When I arrived I saw that the students, Zoey included, were rushing to get their respective horses out while Lenobia and Travis focused on getting the others. I decided to focus on the fire so I jumped off Amiron and rushed inside the building that was just beginning to catch on fire. I searched for the start of the fire and was lead to the back where Amiron's stall is. With a heavy realization I noticed that the flames were coming from his stall. Worrying that the fire may have been my fault I swung the door opened and gasped.

The flames weren't red and orange and yellow as they should be, but instead were black and purple, starting up from my bookbag where I had tossed it on the floor before leading Amiron out of the stable. I rushed into the flames without thinking and quickly froze in expectance for the pain. Remarkably there was none and I realized that the flames within the stall weren't hurting me but instead were wrapping around me almost lovingly. I stood there flabbergasted and watched as the flames that were not within the stall were fiery hot and dangerous, burning the areas around this stall.

"Is everyone out?" I heard Lenobia yell from outside the barn.

"I think so…" Zoey sounded before she continued. "No wait! There's Amiron but where's—?"

I wanted to scream out, say that I was in here, but I was frozen to the spot. I couldn't move, couldn't speak. I just stood there with the flames coiling around me and crackling faintly. My pendant burned as it dangled on my neck under my shirt. It was warning me of something—but what?

Outside the barn/_No POV_

The fire was beginning to spread to the second floor, Lenobia's room, and the whole first floor was almost consumed in flames. The fledglings, vampyre and human that stood outside the inferno watched in horror as they realized that their fellow classmate, student and helper was trapped inside. Travis stood before the barn doors, flames whipping out of the open doorway. Lenobia stood beside him and he risked a chance to glance at her. His heart sank at her facial expression; it was one of a scared girl, one that has witnessed her love burn and die. Travis knew what he had to do—he had to rush in and try and save the spirit fledgling—but he just couldn't do that to Lenobia _again_, not after he remembered everything.

If he died then it will all be a dark reminder of when he died the first time as Martin. He just couldn't do that to her again.

Zoey rushed out towards the flames and exhaled. "Fire, come to me, please make a path to Liran!"

Travis' head whipped to Zoey and then at the barn as the flames did as Zoey commanded and created a path clear down the middle. She was about to go in when Travis shot forward and took her arm in his hand. "No way Zoey. You're a student and I can't have your life endangered like that."

"But Travis I—"

"I'll go in for you Zoey." Travis said after a slight pause. He glanced towards Lenobia who was watching the interaction with wide eyes and mouth slightly opened. "Just keep the flames off me, okay?" Travis asked as he was still looking at Lenobia, his heart going a hundred miles a second.

The young High Priestess nodded and focused on the flames while also channeling water to come and put the fire out. "Water, come to me, please create rainclouds to put out this fire."

From above the rainclouds began to form as Travis paused in front of the doors. He felt so torn and yet he knew he had to go. He was about to step into the burning barn when a voice stopped him. "Stop!" Lenobia squeaked as she rushed to him and put her hands on his arms. "What do you think you're doing? You're a human; you won't be able to withstand the heat."

"Lenobia…" Travis spoke softly and quietly, his words meant for her alone. "_Mon cher_," at the old nickname Lenobia gasped and stared at Travis' face before he continued, "I'll withstand anything because… because I've found you again… and this time, I'm not letting go."

Lenobia felt short of breath as the touch of her hands on him started to burn with the truth. "Martin…" She whispered faintly, her heart pounding so loudly she could hear her own heartbeat in her ears.

The cowboy smiled at her and removed her hands from his arms as the rain started to fall onto the barn in a downpour. "I will come back out safely Lenobia… _with _Liran. That I promise you." He moved in and quickly pressed his lips to her forehead, ignoring the gazes of the students, before he ran into the barn and followed the path that Zoey had created. The path led to Amiron's stall and Travis noticed that the fire—a differently colored fire—was surrounding her. "Liran!" He yelled to her, the heat making him sweat bullets as he used his arms as a shield. "Liran!"

"Tr-Travis?" She stuttered out as she stiffly turned around to face him. "I-I can't—can't move!"

"Don't worry I'll get you out!" He could see that she wasn't burning and thought that perhaps he wouldn't get burned either so he reached out and the moment his fingers touched the flames they shot up and burned his whole arm. He screamed out in pain and hugged his right arm carefully to his chest.

"Tra-Travis!" Liran sounded, fear and worry resounding in her voice.

"What the fuck?" Travis cursed under his breath as he watched the flames. He could hear the rain hit the roof outside and quickly wondered if he could get some water in here only to have that idea shot down when he realized that everything else in the barn was on fire. It seemed hopeless when he heard the sound of wings behind him. Travis turned and jumped back into the stall and almost into the fire when he saw Nisroc.

Nisroc's hand shot out and grabbed Travis before he could hit the black flames and pulled him out into the hallway and pushed him towards the doors. "Go!" Nisroc yelled at him before he looked back at Liran.

Travis stuttered in the hallway and was about to refuse when he heard Liran happily yell out the Raven Mocker's name. "Nisroc! Oh thank—thank Goddess!"

Nisroc moved into the stall as Travis stood and kept watch, refusing to leave just yet until he knew that the fledgling was alright. Looking around he noticed that the rain from outside was putting out the fire outside but inside was a different story. Travis then had an idea and decided maybe it was best to go outside. He ran through the hallway and went straight to Zoey, ignoring the gasp from Lenobia when she saw his arm—and the pang at his heart—and told Zoey his idea. "Could you make the water go _inside _the barn?"

Zoey nodded and started to go into her affinity for water. "Water, please, go inside the barn, start taking out the flames." The water began to pour even harder with some of the water flooding inside the barn.

In the barn Nisroc looked over Liran with worried eyes. "Liran… what happened?"

"I-I don't know…" Liran whimpered out. "It w-won't let—let me go!" Nisroc growled in his throat and moved towards the fire only to have her stop him. "Don't! No! It-It'll burn you!"

Nisroc was about to say something when water flooded into the barn and snuffed out all the flames one by one. When the water moved into the stall the flames flickered and were starting to wither away, just enough to expose Liran flame-free for a moment. In that moment Nisroc shot forward and literally pulled her from the flames grasp before falling backwards into the water from the force he had to use to pull her out. Water washed over the two and he stood up quickly, both coughing as they regained their breath. "Are you alright?" Nisroc asked her as he held her in his arms and protectively against his chest.

Liran was shaking as she wrapped her arms around the taller Raven Mocker's neck and pulled them closer together, her face nestled in feathers as she rubbed her face into his chest. "Nisroc… Oh thank you…" She gasped out before she answered his question. "I'm fine just… just, thank you so much…"

A sigh of relief escaped him as he had his arms tighten around her. "Shh… it's okay… you're okay. Shh…" He softly conveyed to her as a clawed hand stroked her auburn hair.

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><p>Jesus! That was tense. I was stressed out writing that last part. The next chapter is the aftermath of the fire, Lenobia and Travis talk, Zoey and Liran talk; we might see some more White Bull as well as some more Aurox and Nisroc.<p>

_**PLEASE REVIEW!**_


	13. Chapter 13

Lately I've been doing a lot of _No POV_s in my stories. To be honest I always enjoyed writing in third person and not so much in the characters themselves though I do so to add information or deter from information and what not. I'm trying to get back into more character POV to practice putting personality into writing but *sigh* it's just _so _hard when I like to write in 3rd person.

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><p><span>Infirmary_No POV_

The nurse looked down on Liran's body, not a single burn mark on her skin. Zoey on the other hand glanced at Kalona and Thanatos who were concerning themselves over the Raven Mocker, making sure he was alright while another nurse busied herself over Travis whose arm looked black, dry and gnarly. Lenobia hung around Travis, watching as the nurse tried to reduce the burn marks and Zoey noticed that the two shared really intimate looks when the nurse was away—she was there, she saw the kiss Travis had placed on the Horse Mistress' forehead—but still, it was strange to her seeing Lenobia act like this, like a teenager in love.

Liran's voice interrupted Zoey from her thoughts as the young High Priestess looked over to the other fledgling. "I'm fine, I'm telling you. I was just a tad bit shaken up is all." Liran said though she didn't sound too convinced in her own words. Zoey saw, with a great interest, Nisroc turn his beaked head towards Liran, concern in his eyes and his body moved slightly as if he was going to stand and go to her. "Fawn over Travis." Liran suggested as she heaved herself off the table and began to walk towards Thanatos, her Warrior and his son. "He's the one who needs your attention, not I."

The nurse seemingly shrugged her shoulders and moved over to assist the other with Travis. Zoey just stood in her corner, watching this unfold before her, for once, not meddling in what she saw but instead taking the time to actual compute the events in her mind before over-reacting to it. And so far what she computed was as such: A; there is another Raven Mocker on grounds (not that she truly counts Rephiam as a Raven Mocker anymore) and his name was Nisroc, B; Travis and Lenobia definitely had a thing—a big thing—with each other, C) Nisroc and Liran also had a thing though theirs was significantly less 'big-y' and D) something was totally up with Liran.

Liran tentatively placed her hand next to Nisroc's clawed one, but didn't touch him. His fingers moved as if he wanted to close the space between their appendages and place his hand on top of hers but he never moved. Thanatos and Kalona watched the event and looked at each other with semi-knowing glances. That was when Kalona's eyes shifted to Zoey, their eyes meeting. He felt her gaze upon them and honestly it was making him uncomfortable. He already felt admittedly awkward for having a 'lustful episode' with the student and she having one in return to him but that was a shroud of unreal feelings that was left over from A-ya. His heart, if he dare say this, was now moving towards Thanatos, as it should be, but he still felt a connection to the unique fledgling and he doubts that the connection would ever break.

Travis' arm was wrapped up then and was ordered to not do any labor for at least a week, coming back every other day for a checkup and to rinse his arm in a light drizzle of cold water whenever it was making him uncomfortable. He chuckled and grinned widely and Lenobia. "Guess I won't be any use to you now _cher_."

Lenobia giggled and placed her hand over his unburned, unwrapped hand and squeezed it gently. "Travis…" She breathed his name but she didn't say anything else, what she was going to say was already translated by Travis.

Zoey couldn't stand it then. "Liran?" She called out to the fledgling. Liran turned her head, her purple eyes meeting with Zoey's hazel ones. "Can I talk to you please? Outside?" Liran blinked and nodded at her before leaving Nisroc's side, easily, the Raven Mocker glancing after her with sad amber eyes. Once outside and away from the door that lead inside Liran turned and faced Zoey. "What is going on here?" Zoey asked Liran. "You come onto the school with this great and powerful spirit affinity and then you get all nasty and bonkers after that ritual and now this. You were in that fire Liran, how come you weren't burned?"

"I don't know." Liran answered her eyes shifty.

"You _do _know."

"Look, I _don't _okay?" Liran countered. "At least not fully."

"Then what do you guess it could be Liran?"

Liran scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Why are you suddenly so accusing? I told you—and the others—that I have had time in Darkness and you, more than anyone, should understand the power of the Darkness, it can't be helped."

"But it can be fought." Zoey countered back. "Do you think it's the Darkness?"

"No." Liran answered immediately before quickly modifying her answer. "No, I-I do not think that is that, per say. It's… something more."

"Something more?" Zoey repeated her last two words questioningly. "Like what, Neferet?" Liran only shrugged her shoulders. Zoey sighed in result and crossed her arms over her chest.

There were moments of silence between the two females when suddenly Liran spoke up again. "You… wouldn't know anybody that goes by Aurox would you?"

Zoey tensed and looked dead at the spiritual fledgling. _Heath…_ Her spirit cried out before her mouth spoke up. "How did you know that name?"

Liran answered cleanly and without mistake. "I was doing a ritual that gives you the feel of the land, a bit of _history _to say the least and the name popped up alongside yours. It seemed that the names were bound together."

_Bound together…_ "How could you tell?"

"All my rituals are spirit based and so whatever comes up has _something _to do with spirit. I did the ritual a while back, when I first got here and I never really gave it much thought until now. So… does the name sound familiar to you?"

Zoey remained silent for a moment, pondering her answer. "Yes." Zoey answered truthfully. "He used to go here and he was… he _is_ Neferet's servant almost."

"You were saying that he _was _and not _is_."

Zoey shook her head and began to make her escape. Her seer stone burned with the memory of seeing Heath's soul inside of Aurox while Liran's spirit pendant burned as her silent ritual read into the truth of their bond. "No… he is. He is." Zoey said sadly as she turned away, muttering an apology for bearing down on her. Liran hummed her acceptance of Zoey's mumbled apology and turned to walk away from the infirmary and towards the woods where she last left Aurox, passing by the semi-destroyed barn and the horses that were corralled up until a new barn was erected since this one was past repair.

Meanwhile back in the infirmary, the trio were getting ready to leave, Travis and Lenobia opting to stay a bit longer in the infirmary for the human's arm. Thanatos offered Travis her condolences for having his arm burned horribly and he bowed his head at her and then nodded at Kalona and Nisroc who followed behind her and out of the building. The nurses too left to go into the back of the infirmary to continue their job and see if they couldn't do more for the human's burned arm.

"Travis," Lenobia began when they were alone, cutting Travis off from whatever he was going to say, "I want you to promise to not do that again."

Travis chuckled softly. "I promise not to throw myself into a bunch of flames ever again."

It was meant to be a joke but when Travis looked over to Lenobia to see her face serious and not a inch of a smile on her face his own face fell as he stared at her. "Travis… I'm serious. I… I can't help but fall in love with you—I knew who you were the moment we kissed." Lenobia blushed softly at the memory, a small smile gracing her features for a moment before she once again became serious. "I honestly… I don't want to get close to you."

"But Lenobia I—"

"Travis… you're human and I already lost you once as Martin in-in a horrible way and I don't think I'd be able to handle your death again after…" _After many years and you die of old age._ She needn't finish that sentence, Travis _knew_. "I do love you Travis and I always will but I…" Her words died out as Travis took her hand in his.

"Lenobia… please, I only ask for a chance. I love you too and I found you again… I don't want to lose you either." Lenobia looked into his soft and pleading eyes and she felt herself surrender into his gaze. With a sigh and a smile she nodded and Travis, blissfully happy, lunged forward and kissed Lenobia, surprising the Horse Mistress before she too kissed back, still unsure but also blissfully happy.

Nisroc/_Nisroc_

I broke apart from my father and the High Priestess as soon as I possibly could. I wanted to gather my thoughts and consider what had happened.

To begin, the whole day was all very strange to me. Since that morning after the ritual and I had reported to the Death Mistress I retreated to one of the trees and practically say there all day, watching every movement. There were some in which I knew were natural and yet others were not.

I could not quite explain it really, it was as if I _knew _that something would go horribly, horribly wrong and in the end it did.

There was something entirely wrong here. I flew to the fire and heard that Liran was trapped inside. I wanted to fly in there and save her from her doom but I did not want to show myself to the others, I had remained perfectly secret and safe for a good amount of time and I intended to keep it that way. The human went in and after long moments when he did not return I damned all to hell and flew in there quickly, frightening a few fledglings before following the safe path down into the barn. There I encountered the human and Liran, surrounded in black flames as was practically unmoving.

The sound of my wings attracted the attention of the human who then turned around to face me, immediately jumping backwards at the sight of me. His arm was already burned from what I saw and my hand reached out in instinct and saved him before he fell back into the black flames. I pushed him towards the entrance of the flaming building, shouting a command at him. "Go!"

I looked back at Liran and she seemed happy to see me. "Nisroc! Oh thank—thank Goddess!" She stuttered her voice strained as if it were hard for her to speak. I did not realize that the human still remained in the barn, for I was staring in thought and amazement to see Liran unharmed and yet completely surrounded in flames, until I heard his footsteps pounding on the wood as he ran out.

"Liran… what happened?" I asked her, wondering how she had come to be in this situation, a situation which made my heart race and my thoughts short and frantic.

"I-I don't know…" Liran told me before continuing. "It w-won't let—let me go!" I growled in my throat, then knowing that something was _completely _wrong, as if the black flames and Liran's unscathed body were not indications that something was wrong in the first place. I reached out, hoping to pull her out of the flames wither it burned me or not. "Don't! No! It-It'll burn you!" Her voice, frantic, stopped me.

I opened my mouth to argue with her for once again she was not thinking of her safety. I thought back to the ritual where she dared to not _once _but _twice _tried to usher me away all because there was imminent and very present danger. The memory enraged me, and together with my adrenaline and her continuation of not having concern for her own well being were making my thoughts even shorter and more stressed. Water then, in large amounts, moved into the barn, diminishing the flames slowly but surely. When the water flooded into the stall where Liran was, it cleared away just enough of the fire to create an opening in which I moved quickly; thrusting my arm into the opening and yanking her free before holding her safely in my arms.

It was then I had the sensation of falling backwards and quickly realized that I was in fact falling, especially when we both fell into the water that was flooding into the still burning barn. When we surfaced from being momentarily underwater we both catched our breaths (I had pulled us up to our feet and the water pooled around us) before I asked if she was alright, I holding her in my arms protectively and almost possessively. She was shaking as she wrapped her arms around neck, her face rubbing into my chest. "Nisroc… Oh thank you…" She gasped. "I'm fine just… just, thank you so much…"

I sighed in pure relief and held her closer to me, mumbling words to encourage that she was now safe, my hand stroking her soft auburn hair, a thing I admit I have wanted to do for quite some time, ever since we first talked to each other.

Then she grew increasingly aloof. She stayed away from me as we dried off and they checked her wounds. Her gaze was distant, deep in thought, her lips moving faintly as if she were uttering a spell silently. Thanatos and my father arrived sometime after she had finished uttering her words and father looked over me, making sure that I was fine. We hardly spoke to each other, the three of us; we knew the words the other would say and the answers as well.

There were three groups in the infirmary, the human and the professor of horses, Liran and her nurse, and my group. Zoey came in sometime after my father and stood in the corner, watching us all with great intent. "I'm fine, I'm telling you. I was just a tad bit shaken up is all." Liran's words sounded, breaking me from my thoughts to look at her. I was concerned for her and I wanted to move to her but remained sitting for fear that she did not want me by her side for some reason. "Fawn over Travis." She continued as she pushed herself off the table and towards us. My heart beat increased and I began to hear the sound of it in my ears. "He's the one who needs your attention, not I."

She placed her hand beside mine, but did not touch it. I wanted to move my hand on top of hers but once again decided against it. Zoey called her in the following moments and they moved outside to talk, Liran not glancing back at me when she left. I felt disheartened, no, heartbroken, for reasons beyond my knowledge.

When we left the building moments after I stayed with my father and the High Priestess for a while before I moved away from them, like I said earlier, to think. I just could not understand why Liran had acted in such a manner and why the fire did not burn her, and among all things, held her in her position, restraining her. I had a unique feeling in the pit of my stomach and hoped that it would go away but it only got worse. This whole day I had ignored her, wanting to collect my thoughts (I have been doing that more often lately, thinking) and in return she was beginning to ignore me. I shook my head to myself, knowing that there had to be a reason for her strange behavior.

I only hoped that it was not a bad one.

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><p>Okay so I didn't include any Aurox or the White Bull and said conversations were short but I had writer's block on this chapter and I just seriously wanted to move on from this ditch of mine so in short—I'm sorry (again), I'll work better to give you guys better Zoey &amp; gangLiran interactions, more bad guys, a bit more on the Lenobia/Travis story and get more into Aurox because believe it or not he's very important in this story *wink wink*. Uh… what else? Oh yeah, chapter 13—not my favorite chapter.

_**PLEASE REVIEW!**_


	14. Chapter 14

So I just read the first chapter to Hidden on the HoN website and I just _**died **_because there's a stable fire in the first chapter and I was like "CALLED IT! DAMN I'M GOOD!" Then I realized that I'll be comparing between both and most likely mine will lose so hot damn…

Anyways, here's chapter 14, starting with Neferet and her badness.

**Key addition:** _Flashback, 'Talking in flashbacks,' _emphasis _in flashbacks._ If you haven't noticed, there's going to be a few flashbacks in this chapter, actually several.

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><p><span>Mayo Tower_No POV_

The White Bull is more distracted lately. When I call to him he doesn't instantly reply and when he does reply or is here he always seems to space out, deep in thoughts. I did not even think that he would subject himself to space out like he does; he's an immortal and powerful dark creature, why does he need to? When I asked him what was on his mind he simply answered that he was planning to assist me further in my plans for revenge and complete take over.

I don't believe him.

We act no longer like Consorts yet I know for a fact that the bond is still there, I feel it. I am livid about all this. Who is he to ignore me? I am his servant! The Tsi Sgili—she needs—no _deserves _better than this type of treatment.

But who is she to lash out at the immortal God of Darkness. She may too be immortal but it was clear to her that immortals can be killed by other immortals and that was about it—in exception to the Raven Mockers and maybe even Kalona himself. She remembers the story the White Bull told her about he and his brother, a story that took place many eons ago.

_Neferet lay naked beside the strong body of the White Bull, another night of bliss with the incarnation of Darkness behind the two immortal beings. She drew lazy patterns into the Bull's magnificent and soft white fur, her elongated nails scratching at his skin, his tendrils wrapped around them both, silently pleasuring them as they both simmered down from their high. 'Oh darling,' she cooed, moving to rub her bare breast against his body, 'tell me something about you my Master.'_

_A pleased rumbling sound rolled from deep within the Bull's body. 'My curious dark one… I shall tell you the story of my brother and I.'_

'_You're brother?' Neferet asked like a small and interested child. 'Do you mean to say the Black Bull? Does he hold a relation to you, truly?'_

'_We were born together Tsi Sgili; he is, as he will always be, my other half as I will be his.'_

'_The Ying and Yang of the immortal realm.' Neferet said softly as she slithered her way into what would be considered as the White Bull's lap; between his two front legs which were tucked under him and his broad head, her legs tucked close to her body as she leaned into his warmth. _

'_Yes…' He drawled out slowly. There was a pause—a long one—and just when she was about to ask her Consort what was the matter he spoke up, his voice rumbling in his throat. 'We almost killed each other.'_

_It was so blunt, so plain, that it surprised Neferet at first. She quickly recovered enough to ask 'But I thought you were both immortal?'_

'_We are. But a common misconception, my dark one, is that immortals _can _kill other immortals… if they have the right servants.'_

_By servants the White Bull also meant followers but to him he had no followers, only servants—servants to do what the name implies and serve him in anything the immortal incarnation of Darkness wanted or needed. He considered Neferet a servant to him, despite his façade he had placed over the female vampyre. He truly does not love her as she would want him too, or perhaps even imagines he does. He is using her for an excuse to use his dark powers to reclaim _his _own right full spot amongst other, subordinate, creatures. _

_He soon continued. 'They would need to be strong and powerful as well for an immortal to kill another, but the creature is rare, a thus, an immortal might never be killed at all.' He paused, feeling the smoothness of her hand as she dug it through the fur on his chest. 'It was over a matter of our differences—my anger rose as he continued to harass me and we fought to the death though no death would come to us until our wounds were just so great that we both thought we would die. Instead we stopped and have been separated ever since.' Except for when the Red One had accidently called the White Bull and ended up calling his brother too, to even out the situation. _

'_But you wish death unto your brother.' Neferet implied how wrong she was._

_The White Bull growled in anger. He did _not _want his brother did. The Black Bull was perhaps the only being he truly loves in the whole entire universe and between-worlds. He would not know what to do if he were to lose his brother. His brother on the other hand could not stand him. The Black Bull is a righteous creature in every way of the word and because of this the God of Light loaves his other half for his "fun and games" and his quest to gain more power. True, the White Bull hated his brother, but not because they were so different, but it was because the Black Bull, in seeing these differences, chooses to not mind them his darker half did and choose to act on those differences._

_In all actuality, it was the differences between the twin immortals did the White Bull hate the most._

_The incarnate of Darkness rose, Neferet nearly cal lapsing over from losing the object she had propped herself against. He soon disappeared in a puff of dark light, no doubt entering his realm, and Neferet did nothing for she knew that if she did it would not be pretty._

It was the only time the White Bull had been so open—almost human-like and with one sentence she ruined it forever. Not once since then has the White Bull been so open with her. He was now like the creature he was—pure Darkness, leadership and command boiling over.

He was there with her now, brooding in a corner and thinking again. She just watched from the bed, her eyes like daggers and though he could feel her gaze he simply chose to ignore the pissy vampyre. And with good reason—his mind was on Liran Sanders and what good use she would be for him if he could only get her to become his servant.

Aurox/_No POV_

Aurox was in that little forest on the school grounds, thinking and considering the options. He couldn't very well return to the House of Night and attend the school—he was a murderous Vessel that nearly killed Zoey and ended up killing Dragon Lankford. There was no way he'd be allowed back into the classes (he would have said grounds but it was a little too late for that).

He saw the smoke rising up from over the hill and for a long moment he wanted to rush out and help, do something that will prove that he wasn't as all bad as he made himself out to be. But then he remembers that he shouldn't even be there at all and showing up to the source of the smoke would not at all be a good plan.

So he sat and waited, hunted and waited, left and waited. He continued to wait while he wandered around, trying his best to survive in the harsh world, eating birds and small mammals and finding water. It wasn't much of a life—his whole _existence _wasn't much of one in fact—but he was going to live, if only to discover what was between he and Zoey, the fledgling he feels such a connection to but couldn't—not in a million years… right?

A twig snapped and Aurox snapped his head to the direction of the sound, relaxing when he saw Liran, the only other fledgling he really felt comfortable around. "Back so soon?" Aurox sounded, not sounding like himself but at the same time he _felt _like himself.

"Yeah, well… let's just say I'm great at meddling in people's lives." Liran said, her voice lowered and strained. Aurox was about to ask the spirit fledgling what was the matter when she continued. "I found out what connection you have with Zoey already… I doubt she even noticed that I searched her spirit since she's just so weak."

"She is _not _weak." Aurox said automatically, defending Zoey.

Liran sighed, feeling an off sense of déjà vu. "Yes, she is. She's focusing too much on trying to be good in all of her attributes that she isn't focusing on her main one, spirit, and on her emotional shortcomings. I know she's just a teenager, hell I am too, but she should manage herself better. Take me for example—I was in deeper shite than she was and I turned myself completely around, now look at me—powerful."

"Not quite." Aurox challenged. "You are having control issues. I can see it in the way those tendrils always seem to be lurking around your being."

Liran didn't even look. She knew that the tendrils from before were actually heading towards her from behind, wanting to wrap themselves around her legs before climbing up and embracing her. The situation brought back a memory on how she first became engulfed in Darkness.

_Liran watched as the leader of the Dark Daughters slit the wrist of the willing human male, letting the blood drip into the chalice while she made out with him, causing the poor teen to lull deeper into a false sense of security. He thought he loved the leader, and he probably _did _fall in love with her—she's just _that_ good. Liran was only a Third Former and here she is, at her fifth Dark Daughter's meeting, already on the path to take the leader position from right under the current's nose. It was Liran that temped this male to come to the school and three o'clock in the morning. Her spirit called to his and lured him here to this ceremony. _

_She knew she probably shouldn't have done that. It was "evil" written all over it—but Liran simply didn't care. She had the power, had the means to do this—and to hell if she wasn't about to use it. _

_The leader broke the lip contact and looked to the chalice, one hand holding the boy back while his slowly stopped dripping into the nearly full chalice. 'You did good human.' The leader said before she licked his wrist—her only act of niceness—before taking the chalice and raising it up above her with her other hand since she was still holding him down—he trying desperately to reclaim her mouth with his. 'This ceremony will be the best because of your sweet blood, human.'_

_Liran moved around and placed one hand on the male's chest, effectively taking the job of holding down the male from the leader so that she could continue with the ceremony. Liran bent forward and claimed the human's lips, shutting his thoughts out as another girl kissed him. He realized that it wasn't the girl he fell in love with but this current girl wasn't bad either. He kissed back, hands trailing up and down her body, grasping her breast in his hands and squeezing softly. He moaned into the kiss and that's when she broke away and slapped his hands off her chest._

_The leader continued then, reciting the night's spell but Liran just wasn't having it. She was tired of being under everyone—she wanted to be a bigger somebody and not just the fledgling that brought everyone their meals. What she wanted the most though, was blood, and only the leader gets to drink the blood. _

_In midsentence Liran snatched the chalice from the leader with one hand, the other still holding down the prey. Her eyes flashed purple, challenging the leader. The leader was a Sixth Former and was actually anxious to see wither or not she would become a vampyre or die after all this time. The spirit fledgling simply smirked, dragged her hand to the boy's neck and dug her nails into the flesh deeply, the motion causing the boy to faint in second. Now that she had a free hand, her blood coated fingers gripped the back of the leader's neck, her spirit coursing into the Sixth Former's, reading the fate of this spirit. 'You're going to die.' Liran said as she too dug her nails into the skin. The leader flinched but didn't move, frozen in spot. When flesh finally broke and vampyre blood began to flow Liran continued. 'It's about time someone succeed you before you fall flat on that pretty little face of yours.'_

_With that Liran pulled her claws out and pushed the leader out of the circle which of course broke it, badly. The ex-leader began to scream as the consequences of having this particular circle that she opened being improperly broken coursed through her veins. Liran chuckled and began to reset the circle, her eyes flashing purple the entire time and the rest of the Dark Daughters not moving to help their ex-leader. For all they care, she was no longer alive._

"Liran… _Liran!_" Aurox pressed, seeing as the fledgling before him wasn't responding to him for the past minute or so. "Li-ran." He said then, purposely mispronouncing her name.

The fledgling shook her head and looked at the Vessel. "What?" Liran asked, ignoring the fact that he had purposely mispronounced her name.

"You said you figured out the connection I have with Zoey."

"Ah, yes." Liran said, rolling her shoulder and glancing back to take a look at the tendrils which were the closest they've ever been since she was attacked in her last cleansing circle. _Lovely._ _Just plain lovely. _"I'm not quite sure how to put this…" Liran begins as she pulled out her pendant and had it rest in her palm. The stone burned again, this time it relaying the information it had obtained from Zoey's spirit.

"Just tell me." The Vessel commanded.

She sighed again. "As it turns out your soul is her old on-again-off-again beau Heath Luck." Aurox blinked. When he heard the name it sounded so familiar. He remembers that she called him that when he ran away but the familiarity ran farther than that. "And Aurox… she knows."

"I know."

"You know?" Liran asked. She was guessing that he wouldn't know and then he'd get mad or something since this school is just like a televised drama.

"I know." He repeated again. And he realized that he always knew, what with the tissue, the need to be beside her and protect her instead of harming her. He knew. And now all he wanted to do was to be beside her once more.

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><p>So obviously this is a filler chapter. The next chapter will dive back into the action hopefully. <em><strong>Please review.<strong>_


	15. Author's note

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_

I'm going to be taking a mini hiatus of this story. I've started school recently and I'm in all advanced classes and we're just about to kick it up to full speed so I really need to take a break. Also I'm sort of slipping away from this story and I could use the book Hidden to influence me to continue the story and push me to finish this story. So until I finish reading Hidden you can expect this story to be on hiatus. Don't worry though, I tend to read the House of Night books nonstop until I finish them so I'll get through it really quickly before I do that annual "let's make a list of people to see who gets this book next, shall we?" Also I get the new books ASAP just because I can't wait to read the books.

I do know what I'm going to be doing for the next chapter already but I just need to take a break from this story (and to tell you the truth I have another fanfiction I'm working on also that I'm more interested in) and slip back into the swing of things at school.

We start at 7:45 in the morning! UGH! It's a big difference from last year when the start of school was at 9:45 in the morning. Now I have to get up and 6 sometimes 5:30 AM just to catch a half hour + bus ride to the high school. It's disgusting. I'm tired and busy and I'm only getting like maybe _five _hours worth of sleep a night due to my insomnia…. Stupid insomnia.

Anyways, sorry for having to put on this hiatus, I really didn't want to do it but it just has to be done so… Until next time!


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